Who is Andrey Rublev’s Coach?

After a series of commendable performances, the Russian professional Andrey Rublev earned his spot in the ATP Top 10 Rankings. Reaching up to No. 8 in October 2020 must have been the best birthday present for him. And for that, he has his coach, Fernando Vicente to thank for.

Spanish born Vicente played professional tennis from 1996 to 2011. In that course, he bagged himself three singles titles and a rank at No. 29. After he called it quits, he founded the 4Slam Tennis Academy in Barcelona with his friend and coach Galo Blanco. And since 2018, he has been coaching the 23 year old Russian Andrey Rublev.

Before taking the Russian under his wing, he has had the experience of coaching Marcel Granollers and Marc Lopez.

“I’m here to see what is wrong and to try and improve it” – Vicente

The Russian talent might have got what it takes to become a great player. However, it takes time to breed in the character and mentality of a top-class player. Coach Fernando Vicente is there to guide this transition successfully. With their training routines, one can expect to see some great tennis coming out of World No. 8.

In an interview before the quarterfinals at the Roland-Garros 2020, Vicente said, “I’m here to see what is wrong and to try and improve it. People can tell me that he’s [near] the Top 10 and playing very well, yes, but if he’s among those 10 best it’s because he wants to win big things. Yes, as simple as that. And he knows it. There are things that need improving.”

While good games can only win you matches, it is a good coach that can make you win consistently. The relationship of Andrey Rublev and his coach Fernando Vicente is one such championship team in the making.

Six Tour Singles and eight Finals for Andrey Rublev

He might have not steered through to his first Grand Slam major yet, but Rublev is starting to make his presence realised. Winning four of his six tour singles in 2020 itself (Qatar Open, 2020 Adelaide International, Hamburg European Open, St. Petersburg Open), and having beaten Top 10 players seven times (Roger Federer, Dominic Thiem, Stefanos Tsitsipas), he is en route to becoming a quality next-generation tennis player.

But only alongside his coach Fernando Vicente can he can overcome the shadows that loom over his gameplay. When everyone in the sport wants to be at the top, there are certain criteria that need to be worked upon like trusting your coach and having courage in the face of adversities.

On Rublev, his coach said that he was “a great kid.” He further added, “His only problem is that he’s very demanding on himself. He’s Russian. A Russian will try to contradict you the first 25 times. The 26th time, he’ll tell you you’re right. But he’s a very good, honourable guy.”

Andrey Rublev is currently playing in Vienna at the Erste Bank Open 2020 and has cleared the first round comfortably against Norbert Gombos 6-3, 6-2.