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(In Pictures) Tommy Paul Collapses in the Locker Room After Five Set Loss to Alexander Bublik at the US Open

Originally posted on FirstSportz | By Victor Okechukwu | Last updated Aug 31, 2025 7:06 PM ET

Tommy Paul suffered a heartbreaking loss against Alexander Bublik in the third round of the US Open. The 14th seed was the favorite to win the clash as he led the Kazakhstan star 3-0 in their head-to-head record ahead of the match. He was also one of the potential dark horses to win the US Open.

However, Bublik was at his best at the Arthur Ashe Stadium as he dominated on serve throughout the encounter. The 23rd seed was never broken in the match as he ran away with the lead after a tight first set, where Paul had rallied from 6-3 in the tiebreak to 6-5, but a forehand miss gave the Kazakhstan star the set.

In the second set, Bublik changed his tactics, hitting more drop shots increasingly. But, Paul held his nerves and pushed the set to a tiebreak before claiming the win. In the third set, Paul began the way he finished the second and was up 3-2 before he took an unexpected medical timeout, leaving the court.

The American star returned but didn’t look sharp on the court as the physical stress of the late-night five-setter against Nuno Borges in the second round began to show. Bublik wasted no time pouncing on the chance as he claimed the third set after winning four consecutive games, breaking Paul twice.

In the fourth set, Paul was back to fitness and made sure he was not broken despite Bublik using strategic drop shots like the second set. He went on to win the set, forcing the match to a decider, but unfortunately, he was unable to be at his best again. Bublik broke him early and then went on to win four consecutive games in the fifth set.

Tommy pic.twitter.com/0mSFYWExft
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) August 31, 2025

It was then that Paul won a single game to make the score 1-5 before Bublik rounded up the win 7-6(5), 6-7(4), 6-3, 6-7(5), 6-1 after 1 a.m. on Saturday (August 30) in New York. Paul went straight to his locker room after the match and was seen lying on the floor on his back after a brutal three hours and thirty-eight minutes on the court.

Bublik advanced to his first US Open fourth round in his career. He has been in good form since Roland Garros. He has also won three titles in the process including the ATP 500 crown in Halle and the ATP 250 title in Kitzbuhel. He will look to reach his second major quarter-finals at the US Open.

Alexander Bublik hopes to use his masterclass serving technique against Jannik Sinner in the fourth round

Alexander Bublik has faced 12 break points at the US Open but has never been broken. He produced a dominant serve display against Tommy Paul, winning 83 percent of his first-serve points and hitting 22 aces. He will now face the defending champion and World No.1 Jannik Sinner in the fourth round of the US Open.

During his on-court interview, he was asked whether his serves were his main tactic against Paul. He affirmed that it was and that he hopes to continue with the same against Sinner even though he knows it will likely be impossible:

Yes, it is. I have no explanation, but I was playing today and I was like, ‘Eventually it’s going to happen, right?’ He had a couple of set points and then I was serving for the match. I was like, ‘Okay, let’s hope not today’. I have [my] next match against Jannik, so probably that will be the match I will drop a couple of serves. That’s tough, really tough. In five-set format I haven’t done it yet. But I’ll try to use my chances.

Sinner holds a 4-2 lead over Bublik in their head-to-head record, but the latter has won two of their last three meetings, including their most recent at the Terra Wortmann Open. However, Sinner leads 2-0 on hard courts and 1-0 in Grand Slam tournaments.

This article first appeared on FirstSportz and was syndicated with permission.

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