Bublik remains 10th in ATP rankings, enters singles and doubles in Rotterdam
Kazakhstan’s top-ranked player, Alexander Bublik, retained 10th place in the updated ATP rankings published today, Feb. 9. He has entered the ATP 500 tournament in the Netherlands in both singles and doubles.
An evident miscalculation by Kazakhstan’s national team coaching staff on the second day of the Davis Cup tie against Monaco in Astana — sending Bublik on court for almost five hours — resulted in the team’s defeat. In doubles, paired with Beibit Zhukayev (No. 369), and later in singles against Valentin Vacherot (No. 27), Bublik was defeated, although he fought selflessly until the end.
Meanwhile, had the coaching staff knowingly sacrificed the doubles match, a fresher Bublik could well have defeated Vacherot. In that case, Alexander Shevchenko (No. 87) should have comfortably beaten Hugo Nys, whose singles ranking is not highlighted. The disappointing 1-3 loss could have turned into a 3-2 victory. After the failure, Bublik noted that he had done the best he could.
The Kazakhstani player’s ATP doubles ranking has not been calculated for a long time. However, at the 2021 French Open, Bublik, partnering Andrey Golubev, reached the final.
In the Netherlands, Bublik will play doubles with France’s Valentin Royer (No. 57), and the first-round draw handed them extremely serious opponents — the defending champions of last year’s tournament.
Italy’s Simone Bolelli (No. 21) is the 2015 Australian Open champion, a 2024 French Open finalist, and a three-time Davis Cup winner. His doubles partner Andrea Vavassori (No. 22) also won the Davis Cup with the Italian team in 2024 and has reached three Grand Slam doubles finals, finishing runner-up at the 2024 and 2025 Australian Open and the 2024 French Open.
In short, Bublik and Royer will face a difficult challenge. Only in the event of a victory will the Kazakhstani player’s doubles ranking be calculated.
In singles, Bublik will face Poland’s Hubert Hurkacz (No. 70). Hurkacz leads their head-to-head 6-1. Their most recent meeting took place in August 2023. The Kazakhstani player is seeded third.
The ATP 500 Rotterdam Open, currently officially known as the ABN AMRO Open, was established in 1972. The prize money is approximately $2,930,565.
