Andrey Rublev was at it again.
The emotional Russian star provoked concern from fans and commentators as he once again clobbered himself with his racquet furiously during his four-set loss to Francisco Comesana, a player who had never won a match in the main draw of an ATP Tour event going into Wimbledon.
At 1-set all, Rublev copped his second break of the third set to go down 4-1, and went to town on his own leg as he pounded himself seven times with his own racquet.
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A rain delay shortly after only prolonged the inevitable for the Russian as he went down in the first round, 6-4, 5-7, 6-2, 7-6 (5).
Rublev most recently abused himself at the French Open in May, telling reporters at Roland-Garros, “I don’t remember behaving worse at a Slam ever.”
He was asked about the incident in his post-match press conference and said he simply “couldn’t take it any more” before he turned the racquet on himself.
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“I would not do it if I was able to hit the racquet on the floor… because we’re not allowed to hit them with the grass,” he told reporters.
“I don’t know why in that moment, I couldn’t take it any more. I needed to let emotions out. But thanks, everything is fine. Again, I was a bit lucky.”
Rublev escaped a code violation from the umpire because the outburst did not involve racquet throwing.
His behaviour sparked discourse among fans and commentators online, most of which suggested he seek some help to better handle his emotions.
Tennis journalist Jose Morgado wrote on Twitter: “Just horrendous to watch this constantly happen. Especially because Andrey is a good guy”.
American tennis commentator Ricky Dimon: “This HAS to be the end for Rublev. The worst loss of his career by a billion miles, which is saying a lot given how many bad losses he’s had. An unforgivable result.”
Tennis journalist Ben Rothenberg wrote: “This needs to be a code violation, even under the general unsportsmanlike conduct umbrella.
“Rublev can’t be doing this, if for no other reason that it’s disturbing for fans to watch.”
Tennis commentator Bull Cooney wrote: “I think Rublev needs to see a sports psychologist. This happens far too often, and it’s pretty excessive”.
Asked how he can get himself back into form, having become the first top 10 seed in the men’s singles to be eliminated, Rublev replied: “Win some matches, to get this like kind of rhythm back. It’s not easy.
“Since I lost in Paris, I think I didn’t play matches for almost two weeks. Then I played only one match in Halle. Then again almost two weeks.
“When the rhythm is a bit breaking, it’s not easy. You need one, two matches to again feel this confidence back. I guess that’s what I need now.”