Pro tennis player Alexander Bublik flew into a rage and smashed 3 rackets on court, and as usual, the commentators are the most memorable part of it all
- Tennis player Alexander Bublik smashed three rackets during a match.
- Bublik smashed a racket onto the ground five times while the crowd booed.
Alexander Bublik, a professional tennis player from Kazakhstan, was seen melting down during a match on Wednesday and smashing three rackets in anger.
Bublik was playing against his French opponent, Grégoire Barrère, at the Open Sud de France in Montpellier. Barrère won the first set 6-4, and the second set went into a prolonged tiebreaker that Bublik eventually won.
But Bublik started to unravel when Barrère took a 6-0 lead over him in the third set. During a short pause, where they were changing ends, Bublik smashed his racket five times on the court as the crowd erupted in a chorus of boos.
While Bublik smashed his records, ATP commentators Sue Thearle and Mikey Perera narrated what was happening on-screen.
"The good news is, he's got plenty of other rackets," Thearle said as Bublik walked over to his gear.
But Bublik wasn't done yet.
A moment later, Bublik started smashing a second racket on the court, quickly mangling it. Perera counted along each time Bublik smashed the racket, tallying up the number of times he hit it on the court.
"Well, this is getting out of hand now," Perera added, as Bublik picked up and started smashing a third racket.
Amid the crowd's boos and screams, Bublik strode off to his side of the court with a fourth racket, and the game resumed.
Bublik lost the third set to Barrère 6-7. After losing the match, Bublik was seen shaking hands with Barrère and patting his opponent on the arm.
Bublik's loss took him out of the running in the Open Sud de France. In 2022, the tournament in Montpellier marked the first trophy that Bublik ever won in his professional career.
Bublik, 25, is ranked No. 50 in the world. He started playing tennis professionally in 2016. The outburst marked an uncharacteristic moment for a player otherwise known to be playful and friendly on-court.
Speaking of on-court tantrums, Australian player Nick Kyrgios smashed rackets on two separate occasions in 2022.
In March, Kyrgios broke a racket in frustration after losing a three-hour, three-set match to Rafael Nadal at the Indian Wells Masters. And in September, Kyrgios smashed two rackets after a quarter-final defeat in the US Open to Russia's Karen Khachanov.
Bublik's representatives at Topseed did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.