It’s well known that tennis pros’ rackets sometimes get damaged when things aren’t going well. Daniil Medvedev’s anger now has a new outlet.
On Wednesday evening, the Russian Daniil Medvedev lost 4-6, 6-2 and 6-7 to the Australian Alexei Popyrin at the Masters in Paris. A surprising defeat in the round of 16. After all, Medvedev is ranked fourth in the ATP world rankings, while Popyrin is ranked 24th. The anger at his poor performance was already evident on the court.
When things didn’t go well again, Medvedev threw his racket high into the air – and it almost landed on the 28-year-old. When Medvedev went to catch the racket again, he missed. He just managed to avoid being hit over the head by the racket with a quick move to the side. Medvedev then returned to position and threw his racket again – but this time not so high that he could catch it again.
After his defeat, Medvedev said: “The first rounds are always very hard for me. I have to fight in every game. And sometimes I lose.” Medvedev is known for criticizing a lot. Most recently, he was annoyed about the balls used on the ATP tour and said in early October: ‘The balls are so bad, you can only use them to wipe your backside.’ On Tuesday evening, he was not satisfied with the balls either, as he emphasized again after his defeat.
Nevertheless, Medvedev’s qualification for the ATP Finals means that he still has the opportunity to end the season on a high note and to compete against the world’s best players at the end of the year. The ATP Finals will take place in Turin from November 10 to 17.