Sinner meets Andrej Rublev at the Australian Open, who is much more than just a tennis player
Andrej Rublev is Jannik Sinner ‘s next obstacle at the Australian Open , whoever wins the super challenge scheduled for Tuesday 23 January, around 12.15pm, will reach the semi-finals. The Russian, who turned 26 last October 20, is not only a great tennis player, an irrefutable truth certified by his fifth position in the ATP rankings ( behind Sinner, fourth ), he is also a boy whose story deserves to be known .
Childhood and the first years as a tennis player
Born in Moscow, Andrei is the son of a professional boxer and a tennis coach (his mother was among Anna Kurnikova ‘s first coaches ). In his early years as a tennis player, Andrei Rublev spent more time watching videos and reading books about tennis than on the court. His idols are Roger Federer , Rafael Nadal and Milos Raonic . But watching them play isn’t enough, Andrej studies them and decides to try to steal something from everyone. So here are the eyes attentive to the game at the net and the forehand of the Swiss, to the movement of the feet of the Spaniard and to the serve of the Canadian. A lover of boxing and basketball , Rublev jr (his father is also called Andrej) grew up surrounded by lots of sport and music. In fact, in addition to being a great tennis player, he is a composer of electronic music, his legends are Martin Garrix and Alan Walker .
Andrej began to get serious about tennis in 2011 , the year he made his debut on the ITF Junior Circuit. In his second tournament he already won his first title, those who saw him play labeled him as “predestined”. And in fact Andrej flies, quickly climbing the rankings and positions. In 2014 he won two tournaments and won the prestigious Roland Garros Junior by beating Jaumer Munar in the final.
Since 2013 it’s been serious
In July 2013, Andrej Rublev made the big leap by playing his first professional match at Futures 6 in Bulgaria, where he reached the quarterfinals. In October of the same year he attempted to qualify for an ATP tournament for the first time, but was eliminated. However, the defeat does not demoralize him, on the contrary it energizes him and gives him the strength to start again.
Andrej was called to wear his country’s shirt in the Davis Cup match against Portugal and did not disappoint, beating the Iberian pair of Gastao Elias and Joao Sousa together with Kostantin Kravkuk . Andrej is now a reality and in the singles he wins again, this time knocking out Frederico Ferreira Silva .
From 2015 onwards, Andrej Rublev climbed the world rankings with results. In 2017 he won his first ATP title, the following year he was already number 31 in the world . His pace is impressive, he kills himself in training and at the end of 2019 he is just outside the top 20 (he ended the season in 22nd place ). The race to the top continued the following year, when by winning three ATP 500 titles and reaching the Slam quarter-finals twice he crowned his dream of entering the Olympus of the top ten positions.
But how does Andrei Rublev play?
Andrej is a train, not a normal one, but a high-speed one. In 2021 , in fact, he takes home the Olympic medal and several ATP tournaments : he is the fifth strongest tennis player on the planet, a position he still maintains today.
Thanks to an important physique and incredible dedication, Andrej Rublev is today a complete tennis player and difficult for any opponent to face. Coordination and timing are his strong points, his rough character often helps him to never give up, but sometimes it becomes a potential Achilles’ heel: making mistakes, in fact, is not one of his options and we have often seen him give in outbursts.
How the Rublo line was born
Rublev , for his playing uniforms, has decided not to rely on the global giants of technical/sports clothing such as Adidas , Asics , Nike and Puma . Rublo (this is his nickname) a few years ago created his own line which is called exactly that. A brand which, in his words «wants to be not only a sports material manufacturing industry, but also and above all a way of thinking and an opportunity to relaunch the concepts of equality, inclusion and kindness» .
Andrej Rublev is as we see him on the pitch, frank, direct, sometimes bordering on arrogant. Take or leave. And we take, without ifs or buts.
Thus, without mincing words, he does not hide his weaknesses and his fears. “ I know I suffer from depression,” he says, “and that I’ve been thinking about life and death for too long, but before my days come to an end I will continue to fight for what I believe in, for what I love and for who I love. ».
«This is also why we worked on the brand, something that I feel close to me and that I would like to share with people. It’s not just a brand, it’s an idea that can help people and the planet . In truth, Ruble has nothing to do with clothes, it is the hope that the world becomes a better place, choose kindness, for yourself and for others . “