Bublik swept away by Safiullin
Alexander Bublik's head's not really in tennis any more.
After one disappointment after another, the Kazakh has won just 3 of his last 11 matches.
Enrolled in Shanghai, Bublik hasn't really turned things around.
Against Roman Safiullin, he couldn't get anything going, losing by a wide margin (6-4, 6-2).
Visibly exhausted by his repeated suspensions, the world number 27 lacked a bit of fight and let his opponent join Tiafoe in the third round.
Shanghai
Davis Cup: between reforms, criticism and national culture
The paradox dividing tennis: exhausted players and a saturated calendar, yet ever more exhibitions
Training future champions: spotlight on the decline of the French public model facing private academies
Is padel threatening tennis? Inside the revolution shaking up the established order