Alexander Bublik’s father, Stanislav Bublik, who coached him during his early years and guided him to the Top 50 in the ATP rankings, recently shared his thoughts on the financial imbalance in their estranged relationship. The World No. 11 has entered the 2026 Monte-Carlo Masters as the eighth seed after finishing his runs in Indian Wells and the Miami Open.
Alexander Bublik’s Father Reflects on the Financial Limitations He Faced
The Russian-Kazakhstani star has soared to new heights, capturing four titles last season. Bublik triumphed at the Terra Wortmann Open, the EFG Swiss Open Gstaad, the Generali Open, and the Lynk & Co Hangzhou Open.
Apart from these feats, he performed notably in his other tournaments, reaching his maiden Grand Slam quarterfinal at the French Open and the semifinal round at the Masters 1000 event in Paris.
Since 2023, he has been coached by Artem Suprunov, and in his current season, he has reached the final at the Hong Kong Open, the fourth round at the Australian Open, and the semifinal at the ATP Rotterdam.
Before Suprunov, his father was his coach, who, in a recent interview with Sports, revealed his thoughts on the financial limitations he faced while coaching his son to the top, among other significant things.
Bublik’s father mentioned that the financial balance when the father is the coach is a “sensitive topic,” and while highlighting the differences that came in their relationship in this area, he added, “Sasha thinks everyone should be paid except me. To be honest, over his entire tennis career, I’d received $20,000 from him by the time we parted ways in 2019. That’s all I earned from my son – and I’m not even mentioning how much I spent on his career.”
Furthermore, he shed light on the challenging journey of fathers who coach their children, as the two roles clash, sometimes leading to a deterioration in the relationship.
He shared, “Having your own children is always very difficult, because the roles of “loving dad” and “tough coach” conflict. In my opinion, the most negative trait of a coach is pity. Because as soon as you start feeling sorry for someone, they start taking advantage of you. Especially children. This is especially true if we’re talking about our own children.”
Bublik continued to highlight the contrast between coaching other people’s children and one’s own, noting the advantages and disadvantages of coaching one’s own children.
He continued, “If we’re talking about other people’s children, the problem is deeper, and that problem is the parents. It’s always there. Another problem is that you have no means of influencing this child. They simply don’t exist. You can’t apply pressure; you have no leverage. So, working with your own children is, on the one hand, difficult, but on the other, easier because you know them better. And you have levers, strings, that you can pull to achieve results.
Apart from Bublik, his father also coached Dmitry Popko from 2018 to 2022, guiding him to a career-high singles ranking of World No. 162, and Mikhail Kukushkin from 2016 to 2020, mentoring him to reach his career-high singles ranking of World No. 39. He has been coaching since 1995 and is now settled in the USA, establishing his tennis club.
