Alexander Bublik was well beaten earlier today, defeated in straight sets by Alex de Minaur.
This saw him exit the Australian Open in the fourth round, which still marked a career-best run at this event for him.
However, he will be disappointed with the manner of his exit, having completely failed to turn up for his match against the hometown favourite.
In his post-match press conference, he first gave his thoughts on the conditions inside the stadium, before turning his attention to the home crowd’s behaviour.
Alexander Bublik’s honest opinion on the Australian Open fans
Asked how it felt to contend with a player so heavily backed by the entire arena, Alexander Bublik admitted he had faced far worse.
He claimed: “No, you guys are easy. I honestly haven’t felt like I was — yeah, you should play French in Bercy. I mean, I don’t think there is something besides that. Like, there is nothing above that level.
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“Like, you cannot be hated more than when you play French in Bercy. Like, not at Roland Garros. In Bercy. Well, not Bercy, no.
“But I think, no, France was fine, but Bercy was tough. Like, when we had the old stadium, it was tough, no, no.”
He continued, speaking directly to an Australian tennis fan: “No, no, you guys are fine. Totally fine. I mean, when people were telling me I was expecting, like, when someone is against you, you hit the first serve out, and they cheer, like, loudly. The stadium goes on their feet. That’s how you play when you play French in France. Like, you hit the first serve, and then they just start clapping and yelling, telling you to serve double fault.
“No, today was absolutely great crowd. I enjoyed it, and I haven’t felt like I was the one that they hated so much. It was really nice.
“I enjoyed it, and it was a great experience.”
Alex de Minaur is playing some dangerous tennis at the Australian Open
Whilst Bublik failed to deliver on the day, so much credit must go to Alex de Minaur for making it such an uncomfortable experience for the 28-year-old.
After all, he was relentless all afternoon, running down every ball and producing some incredible shots at the end of brutally long points.
He thrived on the slower conditions on Rod Laver Arena and was a deserved winner.
However, things will get no easier for the Aussie, with Carlos Alcaraz next up in the quarter-finals.
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De Minaur has spoken about his clash with Alcaraz already, previewing what promises to be one of the most exciting matches of the tournament thus far.
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