“I’m not the only one!” Andrey Rublev reacts to Wimbledon’s wild opening week

After a whirlwind first two days at Wimbledon witnessed a record-tying 23 seeds crash out of the tournament, the early-round carnage continued on Day 3. Frances Tiafoe (No. 12) and Jiri Lehecka (No. 23) exited on the men’s side, while the women’s draw lost Jasmine Paolini (No. 4) and Donna Vekic (No. 22).

Amid the chaos, No. 14 seed Andrey Rublev, has quietly—and somewhat surprisingly—made serene progress into the third round.

The Russian opened with a four-set win over Laslo Djere, then overcame big-serving Lloyd Harris on Wednesday, rallying from a set down to win 6-7 (1), 6-4, 7-6 (5), 6-3 on Court 3.

Read More: Joao Fonseca shows grit, another high seed falls, and Emma Raducanu gets ready for the spotlight | Day 3 Wrap

“Today it was just more about, OK, the guy serves amazing. He tries to hit the ball. What can I do? I also know how to hit the ball, so I tried to hit first,” Rublev told reporters.

“As soon as I have chance, I try to dictate, and that's it… because the guys who like to hit, obviously they don't defend as good as the ones who like to run.”

The win marked a mental milestone, too. It was Rublev’s first comeback victory from a set down all year, and his first since the 2024 US Open, when he staged a five-set turnaround against Arthur Rinderknech.

Having lost in the first round at Wimbledon last year, Rublev is no stranger to upsets himself. When asked about the tournament’s slew of top-seed exits, his trademark dry humor came out in Tennis.com’s Quote of the Day:

Q. We've seen so many top seeds fall in the last couple of days. I wonder for you, as one of the higher ranked seeds, do you watch those results? How does it make you feel?

ANDREY RUBLEV: Of course, I saw the results. I'm inside the tournament. I'm one of the players, so of course, I saw the results.

How it make me feel? It make me feel that I'm not the only one! (laughing)

Then it make me feel that, now, tennis, is different... Now everybody knows how to hit the ball. Everybody can be dangerous. Everybody knows how to serve over 200 (km/h) something.

Now, it's more about who is more stable, more focused, who is more ready.

Read More: Wimbledon is burning: 23 seeded players lose in the first round

Rublev went on to credit the sport’s depth and rising standard across the board for lifting the level of competition in the early rounds. In addition to the record-high temperatures in London across the first days of the event, it’s been a recipe for draw chaos.

“The level is different. Everybody knows how to shoot hard now,” Rublev explained. “Before it was more tactic, more strategy, how you play, how you defend, how you bring the balls back.

“Now it’s, OK, you have a tactic. I want to play like this. The guy serves 220 (km/h). Ace.”

Rublev returns to action on Friday, where he will face crafty lefty Adrian Mannarino in the third round.