Archive of posts tagged Alexander Bublik

How Alex de Minaur Shook Off Mid-Season Fatigue, Burnout

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By Chris Oddo | Monday August 4, 2025

After crashing out of this year’s French Open Alex de Minaur – the seemingly indefatigable Aussie who plays tennis like the energizer bunny – cited burnout as one of the biggest contributing factors to his on court struggles.

“For the last three, four years I’ve had two days off after the Davis Cup and I’ve gone straight into preseason, straight into the new season again,” he said after falling to Alexander Bublik in five sets in the second round in Paris.

Tennis Express player gear
Tennis Express player gear

“Once you start, you don’t finish until Nov. 24. So it’s never ending. The way [the season] is structured … I had to deal with that. I’m still dealing with that right now.”

Two months later, the 26-year-old Aussie is looking recharged, even if he is at a lower ranking. That’s became De Minaur skipped out on his ‘s-Hertogenbosch title defense in order to prioritize his mental and physical health over chasing ranking points.

This week in Toronto he rides an eight-match winning streak into the quarterfinals.

“I took some time off, I didn’t play some tournaments. I knew I had to kind of shift my mindset a little bit, because what I was feeling, what I was dealing with every single day, was not sustainable, and was the reason for my burnout,” De Minaur said earlier this week.

“So, I decided not to try and defend the title in ‘s-Hertogenbosch, even though I knew it would affect my seeding at Wimbledon. And that for me was the first step, forgetting about my ranking and just worrying about myself a little bit more.”

De Minaur and many other players – from Casper Ruud to Alexander Zverev to Iga Swiatek – have expressed worry about the demands of the current tour schedule, and the smart ones are learning to take matters into their own hands.

“I managed to have a great balance,” De Minaur said. “I’ve had a lot of talks off the court to make sure I am in this right mindset. Now I’m prioritizing myself, and I know that I’m a good enough player, I know I’m a top-10 player, even if I’m not, I wasn’t in that ranking a couple weeks ago.

“If I show up, and I’m mentally ready and physically ready, I know I can provide that tennis. The last couple weeks have been an example of that, so very proud.”

Umag: Luciano Darderi wins title, joins Jannik Sinner on the list

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AlcarazSinner rivalry

Luciano Darderi enjoy two thrilling weeks in Bastad and Umag. The 23-year-old Italian conquered two titles and became the third player with at least three ATP titles in 2025, joining Carlos Alcaraz and Alexander Bublik on the list.

Darderi gained a boost in Bastad and carried it to Umag, lifting his fourth clay-court ATP 250 title with a 6-3, 6-3 victory over Carlos Taberner in an hour and 26 minutes. 

Thus, Luciano became the fourth Italian champion in Umag and the first since Jannik Sinner in 2022. With 500 ATP points within two weeks, the 23-year-old moved closer to his career-high ranking position.

The Italian struggled a bit with a left ankle injury. He felt the pain after celebrating the title, with Taberner helping him to reach the bench, where he received help. That aside, it was a flawless performance from Darderi.

The 2nd seed took 18 points more than his rival. Luciano dropped seven points in nine service games, facing no break points and mounting the pressure on the other side. 

Taberner dropped 40% of the points in his games and gave serve away three times from five chances presented to his opponent. The favorite tamed his strokes nicely and landed 20 winners and 17 unforced errors. 

He had the upper hand in service winners and from the baseline, building a massive advantage in the shortest range up to four strokes. Luciano lost two points in five service games in the opening set.

Luciano Darderi, Umag 2025

Luciano Darderi, Umag 2025© Stream screenshot

 

He fired a forehand crosscourt winner in the sixth game, providing a break and moving 4-2 in front. They continued after a short rain delay, and Darderi held at 15 in game nine for 6-3 in 40 minutes.

Carlos suffered another break in the fifth game of the second set, sending a backhand wide and moving closer to the exit door. Darderi held at 30 in the next one and moved 4-2 in front.

The Italian held at love in game eight for 5-3 and made a push on the return in the next one. He seized the second match point with a forced error, falling to the ground and celebrating his second title from as many weeks.

Watch: Daniil Medvedev hurles racket, destroys bottle after losing epic match point

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Alex de Minaur

Daniil Medvedev had a very hard time accepting a Washington quarterfinal loss as the former world No. 1 hurled his racket and then also violently hit a metal water bottle against the court moments after his defeat.

With French lucky loser Corentin Moutet up 5-4 up in the third set and Medvedev serving to stay in the match, the No. 8 seed sprayed three double faults. After saving two match points, the Russian faced a third – and it was one of the most insane match points you will ever see as it pretty much featured everything and several stunning shots and escaped. Unfortunately for the 2021 US Open champion, it was the Frenchman who took the point and completed a 1-6 6-4 6-4 upset win.

It wasn't shown on the video above but Medvedev threw his racket after losing the match. Then, when he came to his chair, he further took out his frustration on a water bottle.

Medvedev's title drought continues

Had Medvedev defeated Moutet, he would have played Alex de Minaur in the Washington semifinal and come two wins away from finally winning his first ATP title since 2023 May. When the Russian claimed the 2023 Rome Masters title, he improved to 20 titles. Since then, he hasn't lifted a title.

This year, Medvedev came close to winning a title on a few occasions – his best chance came in Halle last month, where he finished as runner-up to Alexander Bublik. The Russian former world No. 1 was also a semifinalist at the Indian Wells Masters and Montpellier.

Medvedev now turns his focus to next week's Toronto Masters, where he has a first-round bye.

Paris | Djokovic to face Zverev as Bublik knocks out Draper

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The first day of the second week of the French Open proved to be the last day of the British challenge as both Jack Draper and Cameron Norrie were defeated in their attempts to reach the quarter finals of the major clay court championships.

The post Paris | Djokovic to face Zverev as Bublik knocks out Draper appeared first on Tennis Threads Magazine.