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It is always good for a scandal and once said he hated Roger Federer. Now Daniil Medvedev is celebrating his biggest win by winning the ATP Finals and staying cold. A portrait of an eccentric tennis player who has what it takes to be a Grand Slam winner.
At the moment of greatest success, tennis players usually show the greatest emotions, they sink to the ground, raise their hands, throw the racket from their hands or simply start crying. Daniil Medvedev is different: after his used match ball against Dominic Thiem, he calmly walks towards the net, without grimacing. As if he hadn’t understood that he had just won the ATP Finals, after all, the biggest tournament after the four Grand Slams.
“I don’t celebrate my victories, that’s my thing,” said the Russian after his triumph in London. He decided this after the US Open 2019. Why then? Because he made one of his many scandals: After ripping the towel from a ball boy’s hand, he earned loud boos from the audience. Medvedev’s reaction: He touched his forehead with his middle finger, and that really upset the audience. After the game that he won, he thanked the spectators during the on-court interview who had given him the energy to win.
It is one of the many anecdotes that Medvedev can remember a day after his retirement. But it will be many years before that. It’s easy to forget that the newly crowned world tennis champion is only 24 years old.
In the last two years it has become a serious opponent for the “Big 3”. This is demonstrated by the fact that he was the first player to beat world numbers 1 (Djokovic), 2 (Nadal) and 3 (Thiem) in his triumph in the ATP Finals. It was not enough to win a Grand Slam title, but his three ATP 1000 titles and the triumph in London show that Medvedev is not far from the big blow.
Be it Thiem, Alexander Zverev or Stefanos Tsitsipas, many players have already claimed that they could one day dominate the tennis tour. Daniil Medvedev undoubtedly has what it takes. The 1.98 meter behemoth is already an asset to the world’s elite due to its eccentric nature. The following anecdotes and quotes should prove it:
The “ugly” game
“His style of play is pretty crazy,” Stefanos Tsitsipas once said of Medvedev. “I am not saying this negatively. It just makes you uncomfortable on the field. He plays carelessly, but in a positive sense. “What the Greek meant: It seems quite unorthodox when Medvedev swings his slender arms like a golf club and throws the ball over the net.” 50 percent of the players He says my game is ugly, others say my game is fun, “says the Russian with some irony.” Sometimes I watch videos of my games and I just think: ‘What am I doing there?’ “
The short wick
Despite its current success, the number 4 of the world is a bad guy than a complacent. That’s because Medvedev keeps freaking out on the court. In April 2016, for example, he was disqualified from a tournament in Savannah because he accused the referee of helping his opponent because they were both black. His coin toss at Wimbledon 2017 is legendary: After his defeat in the second round, Medvedev tossed coins in front of the referee’s chair to suggest a bribe. The Russian had to pay a fine of $ 14,500.
In March 2018, Medvedev wanted to attack his opponent after the match, despite the victory against Tsitsipas, because the Greek allegedly insulted him with the words “Russian shit”. The referee had to intervene to avoid fistfights. “On the court, I’m actually a quiet guy and I would never get mad at anyone, no matter what they do. But I get angry very fast in the field, “Medvedev said afterwards.
In January of this year, the 24-year-old had another real scandal when he hit his racket twice on the ATP Cup chair after a dispute with the referee. Previously, he had cheered a double error by his rival Diego Schwartzman with a “Let’s go”, which angered the Argentine. “He’s very disrespectful on the field and does things he shouldn’t be doing,” Schwartzman said after the game.
The “hate” against Federer
That Medvedev is different from most tennis professionals is also demonstrated by his statement, which he made to the British newspaper “Metro” in June 2019. Because he revealed that he was anything but a fan of Roger Federer at a young age: “I hated Roger . I just couldn’t watch him win over and over again. I encouraged the other players from the first round because I had this attitude. ”
Medvedev was always on the side of the homeless. “Even when Barcelona won everything in football, I really wanted to lose.” Meanwhile, his point of view has changed. Federer, like Nadal and Djokovic, now admires: “At their age they are still ahead of our generation, they have something special. They don’t seem to have ups and downs like a normal tennis player has. You are always ready. “
Fear of marriage
An interview with “Tennis World” also caused a sensation, in which Medvedev said in October 2018 that he was afraid of getting married. “I thought marriage made me a worse player,” he said. After all, his Daria received a marriage proposal, and since the marriage in September last year, Medvedev’s career has only risen steeply.
The world record
Medvedev may not be the biggest popular figure on the tour with his outspoken manners and craziness, but his qualities on the field are undeniable. A year ago he even accomplished something in Stuttgart that neither Federer, Nadal, Djokovic nor any other player had done before: he played his service game against Lucas Pouille in 29 seconds (!) With four aces.
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