Andrey Rublev becomes only third player to be disqualified in ATP 500 events after being defaulted in Dubai

Alexander Bublik who was trailing in the semi-final against Andrey Rublev advanced to the final.

From a title hopeful at the Dubai Tennis Championships 2024 to losing by default in the semifinal of the 2024 edition was not what Andre Rublev would have bargained for when he turned up in Dubai. Rublev’s journey in the ongoing ATP event came to a premature end in controversial circumstances. 

The Russian got in the face of a line judge and was disqualified for unsportsmanlike conduct after intervention by an ATP supervisor. His opponent, Alexander Bublik, was announced the winner by default.

Rublev’s contender for the spot in the finals, Alexander Bublik, was lucky to get away with a code violation for smashing his racquet earlier in the match. The Kazakh is through to the final after being awarded the win, with the scoreline reading at 6-7 (4-7) 7-6 (7-5) 6-5.

In the second semifinal, the No. 4-ranked Daniil Medvedev could not hold off the challenge by Ugo Humbert to lose for the third of four matchups.

The Russian stands to lose all the prize money the ranking points accumulated during the week. He is the first player since 1990 to be defaulted in a men’s singles ATP 500 event since the format’s inception. This is one statistic and club Rublev won’t be proud to have attached to his name.

The other two players to face disqualification from an ATP 500 event are American Andre Agassi (Indianapolis round of 16 in 1992) and Italian Fabio Fognini (Barcelona round of 32 in 2021).

Andre Agassi was defaulted from his second-round clash in the August 1996 Indianapolis Open against Daniel Nestor. The American who won the first set, 6-1, swore at the chair umpire for the second time, having received a warning for the first, and was promptly disqualified.

The showman from Las Vegas is an Olympic gold medalist and has also won a career grand slam. Agassi won his first Grand Slam in 1992 at Wimbledon and was the first unseeded player since Fred Stolle in 1966 when he won the 1994 US Open trophy.

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Fabio Fognini was defaulted for verbal abuse at Barcelona in 2021 in his game against Bernabe Zapata Miralles in the second round. Fognini was defaulted while trailing 6-0, 4-4 against Spanish qualifier Miralles when a line judge picked up the verbal abuse hurled by the Italian and reported him to the chair umpire.

The most high-profile default from a tournament in recent memory was the ejection of World No. 1 Novak Djokovic in the 2020 US Open. Djokovic inadvertently hit a line judge with a ball, earning him the disqualification for ball abuse.

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