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Russian tennis player Andrey Rublev revealed that it would be detrimental to the sport if the All England Club banned Russian players from competing at the Wimbledon Championships for the second year running.
In 2022, Russian and Belarussian players were banned from competing at the grasscourt Major following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The decision, which was quite controversial, led to the tournament being stripped of its ranking points by the ATP and WTA.
In a recent interview with CLAY Tennis, 25-year-old Rublev revealed that Wimbledon should not have a player ban for the second year running because it does not affect the situation and it is detrimental to the sport.
"We had a meeting with the Grand Slams and the ATP. It’s really good that ATP is more open to help everyone. We were very honest, giving a lot of options, and many ways to help," Andrey Rublev said.
"If they ban us for the second year, we will see no changes, and it will be worst for tennis. Only we make more fire in the tennis. And it doesn’t help the situation. We are offering help in any direction that is possible. We want to show that tennis can be bigger than politics," he added.
"Many people don’t want to accept they have weaknesses" - Andrey Rublev
In the same interview, Andrey Rublev touched upon the importance of recognizing one's weaknesses, especially in tennis. He stated that people are afraid to accept their weaknesses and work on them to improve. Speaking about himself, he stated he was aware that the mental aspect of his game was his weakness.
"Many people don’t want to accept they have weaknesses because they feel may be afraid others will learn more about them, or maybe because of egos," he said.
"It's been a journey. I’ve known my weakness for many years. For me, the mental thing is the hardest part. Is easier to improve technical stuff or physical stuff for me. Maybe other players will struggle to improve the backhand and can easily control the mental part. Every person has his weapons and weaknesses. I improve the forehand very naturally, yeah," he added.
When asked why he considers the mental side of the game his weakness, the 2022 ATP Finals semifinalist gave a direct and poignant answer.
"It’s just because the way I am. I’m very emotional and I take everything very personally when it’s something important to me… and tennis obviously is everything to me. Every match, every point, I take it very emotionally and very personally. I take everything too deep and that’s why improving mentally demands time for me," he expressed.
