Alexander Bublik, the Russia-born player who represents Kazakhstan, felt sorry for his old friend and semifinal opponent Andrey Rublev, the world number five, after the latter was defaulted from the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships on Friday.
During an engrossing semifinal battle, both players had heated arguments with chair umpire Miriam Bley.
Russian second seed Rublev was frustarted with some of the calls made by the official in the first set and Bublik was annoyed with the German in the dramatic third set.
But at 6-5 in the decider, after the first two sets ended in tie-breaks with Rublev winning the first one and Bublik the second, the Russian lost the plot when he screamed at a line official over a call.
The match officials soon stopped play, and following a lengthy discussion, they decided to default Rublev over unsportsmanlike conduct.
Bublik, who will now break into the top 20 of men’s tennis for reaching the Dubai final, said it was a sad end to a great game of tennis at a packed house.
“It’s really tough to say anything right now because, I mean, I highly doubt that Andrey said something crazy. He’s not this kind of guy. But I guess that’s the rules,” the 26-year-old said at the post-match press conference.
“There’s not much to say. With all due respect, it was a great match and both of us deserved to win. The crowd was there. We could have played one of the greatest matches we played against each other in a packed crowd in Dubai. It’s a pity it’s ended like this,” he added.
“I wish Andrey to get back on track as soon as possible because we have a Masters around the corner. That’s all I can say.”
Rublev was bidding to reach his third straight final in Dubai, having won the tournament in 2022 and finished runner-up to Daniil Medvedev last year.
But his tournament ended in the most dramatic fashion.
Bublik, though, was sympathetic for an on-court rival with who he has been friends for more than 15 years.
“Well, I played my long-time friend, a person I know for 15 years. We played in front of basically a home crowd because I’ve seen so many familiar faces. It was packed. It’s supposed to go the distance of three breakers. It ended like this,” he said.
“How can I be happy sitting here and saying I did so good, I’m such a good player, I’m happy to be in the finals? I just can’t to it. It’s just against me.
“I take it. I have to play tomorrow (the final). First of all, you just can’t be happy about this outcome because both of us deserved to win.”