Patrick Mouratoglou has a bit different but also very interesting view on Andrey Rublev's outbursts as Naomi Osaka's new coach suggests the Russian probably wouldn't be the same player if he stopped expressing himself because sometimes he needs that spark to deliver his best tennis.
For the past couple of years, there has been a lot of talk about the 27-year-old losing his cool at times and delivering angry outbursts. In the past, he would usually take out his frustration on a racket, ball or the chair - never on himself or someone else.
But in the last year, there were two incidents where he went too far and that led to some even being concerned about Rublev and wondering if there was something leading to those outbursts.
Exactly a year during his 2023 ATP Finals match against Carlos Alcaraz, the world No. 8 got extremely annoyed and frustrated that at one point he angrily smashed his racket against his knee six times. It resulted in him getting bloodied and needing medical assistance.
Then earlier this year, the 27-year-old approached a line judge and started screaming in his face. He was defaulted from the match and later handed a very hefty fine.
On the Tour and in the locker room, players often mention Rublev as one of the most likable players. Also, he has a great relationship with fans. And that's why some simply can't understand why his angry outbursts happen and that's why some asked if he was dealing with some off-court issues and maybe needed professional help.
However, Mouratoglou thinks there is a pretty logical explanation - being passionate is part of his game and that the former world No. 5 is "not himself" when those moments of extreme frustration happen.
I think he had some tough moments this year, he has struggled to control himself and I think he hurts himself. He had one moment like this in UTS Grand Final in London last year, and I saw him after the match and he was feeling so bad about himself, he said sorry 200 times, he was so ashamed, but when hes in the heat of the moment, hes just not him, its the heat of the movement that hes struggling with," Mouratoglou told Tennis365.
When this happens I think it hurts him and I think it hurts his results this year. You had this one at UTS, you had Dubai, and I think thats one of the reasons hes struggled so much this year. I think he needs that craziness to play his best and I think that if he tries to control it because hes scared to go too far, then he struggles to find his tennis so thats a thin line thats difficult to find for him.
Rublev had even Nick Kyrgios concerned
If anyone is familiar with outbursts and meltdowns, it is Kyrgios. And over the years, he has many of them and some of them were pretty wild. But after watching the Russian injure himself with his own racket, that left the 2022 Wimbledon champion in disbelief and concerned about the 27-year-old.
"I mean, from someone who doesnt hold their composure pretty well, like myself, this is crazy. Ive never done that, to be honest. I mean, he needs a knee. He needs to move. I hope hes all right for his next match. Let me say that much," Kxrgios said on Tennis Channel while working as an analyst during the 2023 ATP Finals.
After the incident, Rublev admitted that he was simply "disappointed" in himself and didn't know how to deal with what was happening.
Its OK. I get disappointed and couldnt manage. Its not easy to take these defeats because I really wanted to finish the season well. Sometimes, when things dont work out, its inevitable to be disappointed and today, I didnt know how to handle it. No matter who I face, I never want to lose and even more so since the season is over and I havent been able to show the best of myself in this tournament. Its very disappointing that I was not able to manage my frustration better," Rublev said after bloodying his knee in a shocking way.
When it comes to that Dubai incident, the world No. 8 vowed to learn from it.
"While I am disappointed that I wasn't able to finish my semifinal in Dubai, I am grateful for all the support I had from you in the last two days. I received a lot of messages. Thank you to everyone supporting me, I promise I will learn from this and will try to be a better player and better person," Rublev said earlier this year.
