“I would say this is the most proud title of my career.”
Those were the words uttered by Andrey Rublev after he claimed the 16th title of his career on Sunday, battling back to beat Felix Auger-Aliassime 4-6, 7-5, 7-5 in the Madrid Open final.
In the immediate aftermath of the match, it is easy to see why Rublev felt that way.
It was just the second Masters 1000 title of his career, after triumphing in Monte Carlo last season, while he was battling illness throughout the Championship match – and, as he revealed, across the past week.
But there was something else notable about Rublev across his Madrid Open campaign.
After the drama of his controversial default from the Dubai Tennis Championships, this feels like a sizable step forward for him – and he may have indicated why that was the case.
It was not the stereotypical post-title message that the world No 6 scrawled on a Madrid camera.
The 26-year-old kept things short and sweet, simply writing: “Samadhi, now I’m free.”
Initially, most were left a little confused by the message.
After all, Samadhi is not a concept that we are all aware of – but, a simple look into it provides an intriguing insight into Rublev’s new state of mind.
Encyclopedia Britannica defines Samadhi as “the highest state of mental concentration that people can achieve while still bound to the body and which unites them with the highest reality.
“Samadhi is a state of profound and utterly absorptive contemplation of the Absolute that is undisturbed by desire, anger, or any other ego-generated thought or emotion.
“It is a state of joyful calm, or even of rapture and beatitude, in which one maintains one’s full mental alertness and acuity.”
Throughout his career, Rublev has been characterised by some as too angry, and too out of control with his emotions – criticism that only grew after his Dubai default in February.
What happened in Dubai would have been a huge blow for anyone and it certainly hindered Rublev in the following month, winning one match in Indian Wells before four straight losses.
Usually a ferocious baseliner, holding the ability to dictate from all corners of the court – particularly with his killer forehand – he seemed within himself, often bereft on the court.
In Madrid, it was suddenly an entirely different story.
Rublev did not have an easy draw in the Spanish capital, but a run to the last eight without dropping a set showed that something had led to a renewed energy and a refound focus, both physically and mentally.
That’s as far as many thought it would go, with Carlos Alcaraz waiting in the quarter-final.
But, while it would be so easy to dismiss what happened next down to the Spaniard’s arm issue, full credit must go to Rublev for upsetting the odds.
Despite dropping the opener, the Russian dictated the rest of the contest, bullying Alcaraz around the court on his way to a 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 triumph.
There were no huge outbursts during the match, and no over-exuberant celebrations afterwards; Rublev was at peace with what he had just achieved, realising its magnitude – but knowing the story had not ended there.
After a comfortable semi-final win over Taylor Fritz, Rublev was not at the races early on against Auger-Aliassime, falling 4-1, 40-0 down, and looking more like the player we’d seen the previous month.
But, this is where Samadhi again kicked in: there was no panic, no desperation, just pure focus
Defying illness and an early deficit, he managed to take control of what he needed to do, and while the first set was too far gone, he rarely looked threatened in the second and third.
When Rublev won his first Masters 1000 crown in Monte Carlo 12 months ago, there was a sense it was a huge breakthrough for him, something that hadn’t quite materialised up until now.
Something feels difficult about this victory.
He has seemingly discovered a new mental path to tap into, a growing restraint and self-acceptance that he can use his determination as a calm advantage.
Can this turn Rublev into a constant big-title contender? Can it make him someone who can truly push to win Grand Slams? We don’t know.
But, whatever he has been doing off-court – be it meditation, or something similar – has been working.
Long may it continue to do so.