Andrey Rublev isn't the best Russian tennis player right now and he doesn't feel the responsibility to be the one either.
Rublev is one of several Russian tennis players of a similar generation that rose to the top of tennis in recent years. While not the leading man among them Rublev was widely expected to take over in time due to his tremendous talent. It hasn't happened yet and it's not something he thinks about either. His pressure comes from wanting to become a better player overall.
The pressure is always there but it depends on you, if you feel that there is a lot of pressure, then there is a lot of pressure, but it depends on you. I don’t feel responsible for being one of the best Russian tennis players and my goal is simple, to be better in my tennis, if I’m good in my tennis then everything is simply getting better in my results.
For now, Russian tennis is led by Daniil Medvedev especially this year when he's back to playing great. He's the one that won a grand slam and one that looks to be the leader of the sport in the country for years moving forward. Still, Rublev is not too far behind although he trails Medvedev 2-5 in their H2H matchups so far.
Indian Wells was okay for him but Rublev has now shifted his focus to the Miami Open which begins today. He'll either face Alexander Bublik or J.J. Wolf in his opening match because he has a 1st round BYE as the 6th seed of the event. Either player will be a challenge for him though he leads Bublik 3-0 in H2H matches though their most recent one was in 2020.
His only match against Wolf last year in Washington was also a victory for the Russian who proved better 6-2 6-3.
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