Watch: Bizarre scenes at Lyon Open as Alexander Bublik hits an astounding 6 underarm serves to win a tough game in SF clash

Alexander Bublik hit six underarm serves in one game during his semifinal match against Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard at the 2024 Lyon Open. Although the Kazakh ended up losing the match, he was able to save the game through his underarm serves.

Bublik entered the Lyon Open to gear up for the Roland Garros, where he is the second seed. He won his opening match against Aleksandar Vukic comfortably 6-4, 6-2, and followed it up with a brilliant comeback against Pavel Kotov (4)6-7, 7-6(4), 6-3. His run was ended by Mpetshi Perricard 4-6, 5-7 in the semifinals.

However, the Kazakh did something incredible during the match which caught the eyes of the tennis fraternity. Bublik's love for the underarm serve is well known and it was on full display during the fifth game of the opening set where he found himself three break points down at 0-40. Bublik served six underarm serves (won five) to remarkably save the game.

Although Bublik had a good start to the year, things haven't been going the Kazakh's way since he entered the European claycourt swing. He was seeded in all the tournaments and received a bye in the first round. Bublik was defeated in his opening match of the Monte-Carlo Masters 6-1, 6-1 by Borna Coric.

He entered the Madrid Open next where he managed to pick up a couple of great wins but was eventually defeated by Daniil Medvedev in the fourth round. Things got worse for the 26-year-old as he suffered another second-round exit against Nuno Borges after losing 6-4, 6-4.

Alexander Bublik has attempted to hit six underarm serves in a game previously

Alexander Bublik

The underarm serve is one of the polarizing shots in tennis as many frown upon it but others love it. The shot is useful against players who tend to stand further behind the baseline.

This is not the first time Alexander Bublik, a frequent user of the underarm serve, has attempted to hit six of them in a game. During his third-round match against Frances Tiafoe at the 2022 Wimbledon, the Kazakh found himself 30-40, 0-3, down in the fourth set.

He attempted six underarm serves but ended up missing four of them. Bublik went on to lose the match in four sets.

Alexander Bublik is currently gearing up for Roland Garros, where he will play Gregoire Barrere in the opening round.