Andrey’s brief chat with Sofya: Sofya: was it difficult to apologize? Andrey: no, not hard at all, because I am to blame…i am a nobody to allow myself such things..they are unacceptable in general. it’s disrespectful, so of course I feel guilty for it.
"I was being accused of things I didn't do": Andrey Rublev maintains innocence opening up on Dubai default drama again
ATPThursday, 07 March 2024 at 21:30
Andrey
Rublev discussed the incident with the line judge at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis
Championships, which resulted in his disqualification from the tournament
during the semifinals against Aleksander Bublik, with the Kazakh leading 6-5 in
the third set.
The Russian
raised his voice at the line judge after a questionable call, leading to a
heated exchange. Subsequently, the chair umpire decided on disqualification. It
was later announced that the world No. 5 would also forfeit the points and
prize money earned during the week. However, the decision was overturned after
Rublev appealed.
Following
the controversial incident, the 26-year-old spoke with journalist Sofya
Tartakova and acknowledged that his behavior was inappropriate. He reiterated
that he apologized several times: "Of course, I was disturbed, too. So, by
now, I've apologized several times. No, not hard at all because it was my fault
and it's unacceptable to behave like that, to raise my voice like that.
“No matter
if it's a line judge, a fan, or just a regular person. I am no one to allow
myself such things doesn't matter if a person has been correct or not,"
Rublev said.
"Such
things are unacceptable in general, it's disrespectful. So of course, I feel
guilty about it, and I'm ashamed that I allowed myself to do such things. To be
honest, I have been allowing myself similar things many times before that
incident," he continued.
Rublev faces fan criticism
The
disqualification in Dubai had repercussions beyond the tennis courts, with many
fans criticizing the player and expressing support for the line judge.
According to Rublev, dealing with the fans' reaction, accusing him of something
he didn't do, proved to be challenging:
"It
was also difficult because I was being accused of things I didn't do. Of the
words that I didn't say. I talked to them, it was all discussed and watched,
then, after the discussion you suddenly see that they've added even more words
that you didn't say," Rublev said.
"I
wasn't even offended. I just didn't understand how, we've talked it over, you
can see it clearly, you can hear it clearly. I just wanted to be fair. At least
punish me fairly for what I've really done. For screaming at a person, for
swearing at a person. It was indeed unacceptable to punish me for that,"
he added.
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