Denis Shapovalov was stunned to see Alexander Bublik coming up the court as the former prepared to hit his second serve. Shapovalov and Bublik are currently playing at the 2024 Open Sud de France.
The incident occurred in the second set when the scores were tied at 1-1 and Bublik had a breakpoint. Shapovalov's first serve was wide. On his second serve, Bublik came up the court, which made the Canadian do a double-take. Shapovalov, however, hit his second serve well and saved the breakpoint.
Here is a video of the incident:
Bublik won the grueling encounter 1-6, 7-6 (12), 6-3. Shapovalov won the first set with ease, dropping just one game. In the second set, the Kazakh raised his level to deny Shapovalov, saving three match points to force a third set.
In the decider, Bublik broke the Canadian's serve early and held on to secure his spot in the quarterfinal. He will face compatriot Alexander Shevchenko for a place in the last four.
Alexander Bublik previously won the title in Montpellier in 2022, defeating the top seed Alexander Zverev in straight sets in the final.
Alexander Bublik's season so far
Alexander Bublik has had a good start to 2024. He reached the semifinals of the Adelaide International - his first tournament of the year. Bublik defeated James Mccabe and Dan Evans in the first and second rounds respectively. The Kazakh prevailed over Lorenzo Musetti in a 3-set encounter in the quarterfinal to book his place in the final four. However, he lost to a resilient Jack Draper in straight sets in the semifinal.
At the 2024 Australian Open, the Kazakh had a poor showing as he lost to Sumit Nagal in straight sets in the first round.
Bublik entered the 2024 Open Sud de France as the second seed, having received a bye in the first round. He defeated Denis Shapovalov in the second round to reach the quarterfinals, where he will face Alexander Shevchenko for a place in the semifinal.
Bublik entered the new season on the back of a strong showing in 2023. He won the title at the Antwerp European Open and also the Halle Open - the latter of which is the biggest title of his career to date. He also reached the fourth round at Wimbledon, his best run at any Grand Slam event so far.