Andrey Rublev came under fire when he pulled out of a tournament to head to the ATP Finals.
Andrey Rublev has responded after one of his rivals claimed he was disrespectful (Image: Getty)
Andrey Rublev has responded after one of his rivals accused him of being “unfair” and “disrespectful” when he pulled out of the Moselle Open.
The Russian took a wildcard into the ATP 250 event to fight for a place at the ATP Finals. But he didn’t need to bother – Novak Djokovic withdrew and it secured Rublev a spot at the year-end championships.
Rublev still played and won his match in Metz before pulling out. And he has now blamed Djokovic for his last-minute decision.
Rublev beat Lorenzo Sonego 7-6(3) 7-5 at last week’s Moselle Open and pulled out almost immediately. The tournament announced his withdrawal, saying: “During his match, A.Rublev experienced pain, which was confirmed by on-site medical staff who suspected an abdominal injury.
“He chose to withdraw from the tournament and travel to Turin to follow a treatment and recovery protocol, to enhance his chances of competing in the ATP Finals.”
But Sonego, who had already been ousted from the event, wasn’t happy. The Italian claimed Rublev knew he was always going to pull out and even turned up to the match with his suitcases so he could leave.
“There were some lucky losers waiting to get in, and he took the spot from a lucky loser; he took away my chance to move forward in the tournament when he already knew he wasn’t going to play. It wasn’t very fair or respectful toward me,” the world No. 53 told Ubitennis.
Lorenzo Sonego lost to Andrey Rublev in Metz minutes before the Russian pulled out of the tournament
Rublev has now responded to his rival’s claims, admitting he was at fault. But he also claimed Djokovic pulled out of the ATP Finals too late, by which time he had no choice but to play his opening match in Metz even if he wanted to leave.
The world No. 9 told Championat: “I understand his emotions, it was probably badly on his part. Everything is relative. I came to this tournament to get to the Finals.
“He understood it, the tournament organisers understood it too. When rumours started that Novak would withdraw, [Casper] Ruud, [Alex] de Minaur and I were waiting for his decision.
“All the tournaments and players knew about it. If he had withdrawn earlier, no one would have played this tournament.
“But Novak withdrew on the day of my match. I decided to play because the spectators bought tickets. I wanted to somehow compensate for this situation with Turin. I am sure that if Sonego were in my place, he would have done the same.”