I had a great time partying in Las Vegas," Bublik reveals the anecdote that helped him bounce back

Against all odds, Alexander Bublik is among the players advancing to the round of 16 at Roland-Garros.

The Kazakh, who had dropped to 62nd in the world rankings, successively defeated James Duckworth, Alex De Minaur, and Henrique Rocha to secure his spot in the second week. All this on clay, his least favorite surface.

During a press conference, Bublik admitted he arrived in Paris with a new mindset:

"After Wimbledon 2024, I reached the 17th spot. If I could go back to that moment, I’d take several weeks off. When I reached that level, I started sacrificing a lot and putting too much pressure on myself.

Falling out of the top 50 wasn’t due to bad behavior or anything like that. I was burning out, hoping for results that never came.

I kept telling myself, 'Okay, if I train harder, if I hit better forehands, things will fall into place.' Nothing happened, and I reached a point where I wondered, 'Why am I making so many sacrifices?'

My coach suggested I go to Las Vegas between the Indian Wells and Phoenix tournaments. He told me, 'If you keep going like this, you won’t even be in the conversation for Wimbledon.' I had a great time partying, getting hungover.

I spent three good days there. I arrived three hours before my match in Phoenix thinking I was useless, that I couldn’t win a single match.