"He likes to make fun of players" - Corentin Moutet fires back after Alexander Bublik calls him a 'rat' & metes out 'punishment' at Paris Masters

Corentin Moutet and Alexander Bublik recently faced off against each other in the second round of the ongoing Paris Masters. The encounter saw a fair bit of drama, with Bublik calling his French opponent a ‘rat’ midway through the match, and Moutet responding swiftly after their battle concluded.

Bublik and Moutet have been rivals on the tennis court for some time now. Earlier this year, the duo got into a verbal altercation at the net after their clash at the Arizona Tennis Classic. Their conflict continued into the Paris Masters, and during their second round battle, Bublik was heard calling the Frenchman a ‘f**king rat’ for celebrating his doubles faults.

After the match, Alexander Bublik doubled down on his attack against Moutet, saying in a post match interview,

“Well obviously he spoke too much before the match. He spoke too much. I just have to punish him. I have no other option. He said he would do everything to send me home. So it’s nice that he lives in Paris and it’s not too far with the taxi.”

Responding to the Kazakh's swipe, Corentin Moutet said in a press conference,

“Today I tried to focus on myself. I don't think it was personal. He likes to make fun of players. I don't know what you expect from me. Some people talk; some people don't. I guess he's part of the first category. He loves to verbally clash with people. I don't like that kind of thing. When things go beyond words, I know how people behave and I know what kind of character he is apart from the character that is shown in the media. So it's no use talking behind the mic. He's good enough to do that by himself. I'll let him do it.”

Prior to their clash at the Paris Masters, Moutet had told press that he was looking to ‘send Bublik home’, a comment that seemingly rubbed the Kazakh the wrong way.

Alexander Bublik sets up round of 16 clash against Taylor Fritz

Bublik at the Rolex Paris Masters 2025 (Image Source: Getty)

Alexander Bublik has enjoyed a strong campaign at the Paris Masters. The 28-year-old kicked off his time at the ATP Masters 1000 event with a straight sets win over Alexei Popyrin. He then disposed of Corentin Moutet 6-3, 7-5.

Up next, Bublik will now run into USA’s Taylor Fritz for this round of 16 encounter in Paris. The duo have played each other six times before, and while their head-to-head record is divided evenly amongst them, Fritz has won their last three clashes.

If Alexander Bublik does manage to defeat Fritz, he will run into either sixth seed Alex de Minaur or tenth seed Karen Khachanov.

Edited by Riddhi Acharya