"I want to give a hug to this person" - Andrey Rublev gets emotional after fan confesses how he helped them rediscover their love for tennis
Andrey Rublev is winning hearts with his warm response to a fan who thanked the star for helping them rediscover their love for tennis.
Rublev has become a fan favorite through his childlike enthusiasm off the court. The Russian has amused many with his lively laughter and funny reactions during Q&A sessions with the ATP. Recently, he and Alexander Zverev even turned into 'physics teachers' for a promo video.
Rublev was also featured in a short video posted by the ATP Tour on Tuesday. In the clip, he read out a YouTube comment from a fan who thanked him for helping them watch tennis following their mother's death.
"In the hopes that maybe Andrey reads this, I say this. You are the reason I started to watch tennis again after losing my mother to cancer. We loved watching tournaments together and after she died, I found it too difficult to watch without her," the fan said.
Thank you for inspiring us🖤
@AndreyRublev97 https://t.co/Gqy0yuZPCX
The fan further wrote about how they accidentally came across Andrey Rublev's match against compatriot Daniil Medvedev in the 2020 US Open quarterfinals.
"One night I couldn't sleep, went back downstairs to watch some television and stumbled across you playing Daniil in the US Open quarterfinal. You lost the math but got me hooked again and I have followed you ever since, so thank you Andrey. I hope I can meet you one day to thank you in person," the comment read.
Andrey Rublev was deeply touched by the fan's comment. He responded that he wanted to give the person "a hug and say thanks."
"That's hard. I want to give a hug to this person and say thanks for being strong," the World No. 7 said. "There is nothing to thank me. I want to say, thank this person because this is, I would say, this is opposite. This is inspiring me. I feel very impressed with this message, with the person, because there is a way to face it and keep believing, I would say."
Andrey Rublev loses to Jannik Sinner in the Miami Open
Andrey Rublev lost to Italy's Jannik Sinner in the round of 16 at the Miami Open. The Russian, who hadn't dropped a set before this match, lost 6-2, 6-4 to Sinner.
Sinner hit eight aces and didn't face a single break point as he sealed a spot in the quarterfinals of the tournament held in Florida. This was Rublev's second consecutive loss in the round of 16, the first coming at the BNP Paribas Open held in Indian Wells.