Andrey Rublev finds his 'chill' under Marat Safin at the Australian Open
The No. 13 seed rallied past qualifier Jaime Faria to reach the third round.
Published Jan 21, 2026
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Andrey Rublev is channeling Marat Safin’s laidback energy and 'chill' vibes as he continues his run at the Australian Open.
The No. 13 seed was tested on Wednesday by Portuguese qualifier Jaime Faria, eventually overcoming a late wobble to clinch a four-set victory in the second round, 6-4, 6-3, 4-6, 7-5. Afterward, Rublev was effusive in his praise of his opponent.
'I didn’t know him at all… and to be honest I don’t understand how he’s in qualies,' Rublev said. 'With his level, he (should be) much better… It was not easy, but I was just trying to be there and trying to fight and looking for my moment.'
Throughout the match, his coach—Safin, the 2005 Australian Open champion—looked effortlessly cool in sunglasses and a Paul McCartney sweatshirt, exuding calm as he watched Rublev regroup and rally to victory on Margaret Court Arena.
Read More: Marat Safin on coaching Andrey Rublev: 'I can show him the road, but he needs to walk it' (https://www.tennis.com/baseline/articles/marat-safin-on-coaching-andrey-rublev-interview-2025-uts-nimes)
Rublev had already discussed Safin’s influence during a slightly chaotic on-court interview (https://www.instagram.com/p/DTszAYvjlBc/) after his first-round win, saying the former world No. 1 mainly brings 'chill' and 'relax' to his high-strung team. He expanded on that after beating Faria.
'Obviously I’m not going to say the truth, but he brings everything,' Rublev told press. 'Much more calmness for sure, as well.'
Rublev is off to a strong start to the season, having reached the semifinals of his first tournament of the year in Hong Kong and now advancing to the third round in Melbourne.
It’s already an improvement on last year, when he suffered back-to-back opening-round losses to start the season 0-2. The big difference this time around: former world No. 1 Safin in his corner, after officially joining Rublev’s coaching team alongside Fernando Vicente in April 2025.
Rublev is now looking to level off after two up-and-down years marked by on-court inconsistency and mental health struggles, hoping that stability can translate into a Grand Slam breakthrough.
Part of that reset has included a grueling off-season and pre-season training block focused on conditioning and high-intensity practice, a sign he’s willing to try new things to evolve his familiar baseline power game.
'It’s crazy because now, with Marat and members of my team, they’re killing me,' Rublev said in December. 'I can’t remember another year when they have done this to me.
'It’s fitness to begin with for two and a half hours, then it’s tennis for two hours—and he’s killing me. No mistakes from the baseline, high intensity from the baseline until you make it.
'This push is all for me. It’s always about yourself.'
The other part of the equation is making sure Rublev stays decidedly unserious whenever possible, both on and off court. Before Safin officially joined the team, Rublev had turned to him for help (https://www.tennis.com/baseline/articles/andrey-rublev-one-big-talk-marat-safin-fix-my-head-after-wimbledon-slump-mental-umag-croatia) in 2024 during a major depressive episode. They stayed in touch, and Safin joined the team a year later.
'We (have) fun together,' Rublev said. 'But it depends on the day. When it’s a more serious day, then we try to make it more serious. But when it’s time for fun, we (have) fun as well.'
Up next, Rublev will face Francisco Cerúndolo in the third round. The Argentine leads their head-to-head 3-1. Rublev is a three-time Australian Open quarterfinalist.
