"When Frances Tiafoe said the same thing, everyone was on his a**" - Fans call out 'double standards' after Alexander Bublik reignites 'clowns' debate

Alexander Bublik's recent comments about his opponents, resembling Frances Tiafoe's use of the term 'clown,' were not well-received by fans. They highlighted the apparent double standards, noting that while the American was criticized for making similar remarks, Bublik's statements were labeled as humorous.

Since the second half of 2023, Tiafoe has struggled to make deep runs in tournaments. Although he made it to the top 10 in June last year, he has since fallen to No. 29 in the current ATP rankings.

Reflecting on his poor run of form following his first-round win at the 2024 Wimbledon, the American said he took the sport for granted and ended up losing to "clowns." Subsequently, he faced heavy criticism from fans online.

Now Alexander Bublik has come under the scanner too in light of his recent statements. Following his second-round win over Arthur Cazauxat at the 2024 Wimbledon Championships, the Kazakh player spoke with the Tennis Channel, saying he got injured before facing Lorenzo Musetti in the quarterfinals of the BOSS Open in Stuttgart. Despite the challenges, he took the risk and competed in the subsequent tournaments.

"For the first few weeks I played...I got hurt at the beginning before a match against Musetti. I was barely walking and I was really struggling. I wanted to play Halle, I was told not to. I wanted to play Eastbourne, I was told not to because it would possibly harm Wimbledon. I took the risk...I said OK, I will try because it's my favorite surface."

Bublik further said it was difficult for him and his team to eventually lose to his opponents, referring to them as "what Tiafoe said" - thus implying they were "clowns."

"It was very disappointing for me and my team to lose against... you know, what Tiafoe said," he added.

While many fans on X (formerly Twitter) found Bublik's comments humorous, there has been some pushback from other fans. One of them alleged there were double standards, given the backlash Frances Tiafoe faced.

"Always been disrespectful, homophobic, hates tennis, calls his colleagues clowns and yet everyone in the quote tweets think it’s hilarious but when tiafoe said the same thing everyone was on his a*s lall day long.. double standards evident af," they wrote.

"Tiafoe calls his opponents a clown: He is arrogant, shameless, and a clown himself. Bublik calls his opponents a clown: Omg he is so funny, my baby lol xoxoxo. Make it make sense...," a fan said.

One fan claimed that Bublik's comments lacked sportsmanship, adding that legends like Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic would never have said anything similar.

"I don't think it's funny. It's disrespectful to other players trying their best. It's not sportsmanship. Roger, Rafa, enen Novak would have never said anything like that," they wrote.

Here are a few more reactions from the fans.

"It’s funny when the white guy says it, but the same whites ripped Big Foe a new one though," one fan chimed in.

"Excuses for losses and ridiculing others. Said person," a fan said.

"I’m sorry what did tiafoe say I don’t get it," another commented.

Frances Tiafoe and Alexander Bublik have advanced to the third round of Wimbledon 2024

Day One: The Championships - Wimbledon 2024

Frances Tiafoe will face the defending champion Carlos Alcaraz in the third round of the London Major. The Spaniard appeared only at the Queen's Club Championships in the lead-up, where Jack Draper eliminated him in the second round.

At Wimbledon, Alcaraz has convincingly defeated Mark Lajal and Aleksandar Vukic in the first two rounds to proceed further.

Alexander Bublik on the other hand is set to face 12th seed Tommy Paul in the third round of the London Major. Paul has shown promise in the lead-up to Wimbledon, reaching the quarterfinals of the Libema Open and winning the Queen's Club Championships.

Paul has so far defeated Pedro Martinez and Otto Virtanen in closely contested first and second-round matches in his Wimbledon campaign. He leads the head-to-head 1-0 against Bublik.