Andrey Rublev on ranking debate: "It would normally be number four"
One of those players who are particularly suffering from the ranking that has been adjusted due to COVID-19 is Andrey Rublev . Now the Russian has commented on it.
by Michael Rothschädl
last edit: Mar 16, 2021, 05:45 pm
Andrey Rublev's tennis year 2020 can easily be classified as excellent. The young Russian wanted to win five titles in the preseason, three of them at ATP 500 level, where the 23-year-old now has a 21-game streak of victories. This is of course also reflected in the world rankings, the Russian has improved by 15 places to eighth since the beginning of 2020.
An improvement that, under normal circumstances, would have been far more significant. If the ATP had been calculated according to the normal ranking system in the last twelve months, the young Russian would meanwhile be in fourth place on the ATP charts. Others, such as the 20-time Grand Slam winner Roger Federer, who underwent an operation after the Australian Open 2020 - and thus took a break from competition - in turn benefit from the ranking reform.
Mind you, the reform is only a temporary change to the calculation system to protect all those players who cannot defend their points in tournaments that are not taking place due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. And yet there are negative voices from among the athletes, just recently, for example, Alexander Zverev was not very enthusiastic about the ranking system.
Rublev: "Much more difficult for me"
Andrey Rublev was also not very enthusiastic about the changes in the scoring system in the run-up to the ATP 500 tournament in Dubai: "If we had the normal system, I think it would be number 4 in the world. So what do you think? is it better for me to be 8 or 4? With the system we have now, it is much more difficult for me to be number 4, so here is my answer and opinion, "replied the Russian when asked by a journalist .
Andrey Rublev is on the hunt for his fifth title at this level in a row at the ATP 500 event in Dubai these days. In the previous year Rublev had triumphed in St. Petersburg and Vienna after Hamburg, and in 2021 the Russian celebrated winning the title in Rotterdam. Dominic Thiem enters the race as number one in the United Arab Emirates.