"And Federer, Taylor Fritz wonder why there are no openly gay players" - Tennis fans appalled by Alexander Bublik's homophobic rant at Libema Open

Tennis fans were quick to recall Roger Federer and Taylor Fritz's supportive remarks on openly gay players in light of Alexander Bublik's abusive tirade containing homophobic slurs at the 2023 Libema Open.

Bublik defeated David Goffin 7-5, 7-5 in his tournament opener at 's-Hertogenbosch to advance to the Round of 16.

The clash saw a moment of controversy when the Kazakh launched into a frustrated rant in Russian during the changeover after being broken at 3-4 in the second set.

A fan took to social media and translated Alexander Bublik's words into English, claiming he said:

"F**king b*stard's luck. I f**ked its mouth. It's just f**king bullshit. Then they will tell me to practice. F**k you f*ggots, I f**ked your mouth. Each one who says you need to practice. To hit this f**king bullsh*t? F**king b*stards? What the hell is this sh*t? He hits everything in lines, I have three millimeters out on break point. I'm f**king in awe. Sitting on these f**king f*g courts seven hours a day, why the f**k do I need it?"

A fan expressed their disappointment and frustration with ATP players for the ease with which they used homophobic slurs.

The fan also asserted that Bublik's words contradicted Roger Federer and Taylor Fritz's claims of a welcoming locker room environment for openly gay players.

"Homophobic slurs roll out of these atp players' tongues just so naturally, and players like Roger and Taylor (others too, but these are the ones I stan) wonder why there are no openly gay players and insist locker room has welcoming environment. Bublik can choke!" the fan tweeted.

"Yeah but some say that it would be "totally fine" if a tour player came out," another fan chimed in.

Another fan pointed out the irony in Bublik's use of a homophobic slur during Pride Month.

"Not the homophobic slurs during pride month, very classy of him," the user commented.

Here are a few more fan reactions:

In light of Alexander Bublik's rant, here are Roger Federer and Taylor Fritz's comments on gay players on the ATP tour

Roger Federer's comments on gay players were brought up in the wake of Alexander Bublik's rant

At the 2018, Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati, Roger Federer acknowledged the lack of openly gay players on the ATP tour. He believed that if a player was to come out of the closet, they would be "totally accepted."

“Yeah, I think no problem at all. Yeah, it is true we have not had it. Don’t know why, you know? Have we not had any, or some players have just chosen to not do it? I think it would be totally accepted, no problem," Federer said.

In an interview with Clay in December 2022, Taylor Fritz expressed a similar sentiment.

"I'm not sure if there are homosexual tennis players in the top 100. Statistically speaking, there should be. ... I think it is odd, because I feel like a player would be accepted. I and my friends, other players on tour wouldn't have any issues with it, it would be totally normal and I think people would be accepting," Fritz said.

In other news, Alexander Bublik was ousted from the Libema Open in the Round of 16 by Jannik Sinner, who won 6-4, 6-2.