Tennis fans often joke, “I’m just here for the handshake,” anticipating the brief post-match interaction between competitors. But Alexander Bublik has elevated that moment to an art form, using the net as an impromptu stage to deliver jokes about his own game while lavishing praise on his opponent.
That tradition continued on Friday at the Erste Bank Open, where Bublik fell 6-4, 6-4 to top seed Jannik Sinner in the quarterfinals. As the match concluded, Bublik turned the handshake into a mini-stand-up session, leaving Sinner chuckling in the umpire’s chair. Unfortunately for fans, there was no microphone, so Bublik’s banter was only audible to Sinner himself.
Still, Bublik’s past interactions with Sinner offer plenty of insight. Since their second meeting at the 2021 Miami Open, Bublik has consistently praised his Italian rival. By the 2025 US Open, his compliments had embraced modern tech, comparing Sinner to “an AI-generated player” after their fourth-round clash.
Although Sinner holds a 6-2 head-to-head advantage over Bublik, the Kazakh has maintained an undefeated streak at the net during these exchanges, proving that some battles aren’t decided by the scoreboard.
On the tournament side, Sinner now advances to the semifinals to face Turin-bound Alex de Minaur. Seeded third in Vienna, De Minaur secured his semifinal berth with a 6-1, 7-6 (4) win over Italy’s Matteo Berrettini, keeping alive his chances of qualifying for the ATP Finals for a second consecutive year.
