Beijing joke: Medvedev quarreled again and crashed out of the China Open
Former world number one Daniil Medvedev continues his suffering on the courts. The Russian tennis player, shackled by cramps, could not finish his semi-final against American Lerner Tin and during the meeting staged another show conflict with the referee. It's a shame, considering that Daniil had easily beaten the third racket of the world Alexander Zverev.
The circle has closed
Beijing did not expect any special feats from Medvedev. The Russian has just started working with coach Thomas Johansson, and they need time to find solutions to overcome the crisis. The debut for the new team began with an unsuccessful tournament in Hangzhou, where Daniil lost to the 196th racket of the world Wu Yibin in the quarterfinals.
Therefore, the successes in the Chinese capital were perceived cautiously. Although our tennis player confidently passed quite strong players on the grid in two sets: Briton Cameron Norrie and Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich-Fokin. When the Russian dealt with the third racket of the world Alexander Zverev, hopes for the imminent revival of Medvedev became clearer.
"I'm very happy with the victory," Daniel said after the match. — I played exactly the way I wanted to: I was aggressive when it was necessary, I almost didn't miss, I was decisive where it was required of me. I'm definitely improving and I'm looking forward to making even more progress.
But Zverev, like Norrie and Davidovich-Fokin, can be called a "client of Medvedev." Even in this disastrous season, our tennis player beat the Russian German at the Halle tournament. The biggest test of Daniil's condition was not the 3rd, but the 52nd racket of the world, Lerner Tin.
It was with the defeat of Tina in the second round of the Australian Open that Medvedev's unsuccessful 2025 began. In Beijing, it was necessary to take revenge and close this cycle. It was clear that it would not be easy to do this.
— I'm in a good mood, but it's going to be a difficult match. My opponent is capable of showing a great game. He's young, but he's performing better than you'd expect from his ranking. He has already beaten strong players in this tournament. We had a joint training session before the tournament, and he looked very confident. The training set was not easy. I expect a hard fight and hope that I will be able to demonstrate high—quality tennis," Daniel announced the meeting.
A game away from victory
However, the Russian did not get any high-quality tennis at the start. Medvedev has given a disastrous start. In the shootouts, which got longer and longer as the meeting progressed, he couldn't keep up with the suggested pace and made mistakes in length. The serve, in which tall Daniil clearly outperforms his opponent, also flew every other time. As a result, the first set started for our tennis player with a score of 0:3 with two breaks of Tin.
In the fourth game, Medvedev began to wake up. He began to take risks more often, and under this pressure, Lerner began to slowly break down. The situation in the match began to change. Now Daniel easily took the games on his serve and forced Tina to fight on his own.
In protracted rallies, the advantage remained with the American for a long time. He played more with Daniel's favorite tactics, clinging to difficult balls in defense and practically not attacking. Therefore, the Russians did not need to sit on the defensive, but to attack themselves. Gradually, it started to get better, and the octopus won back both breaks, went ahead and even got a set ball, which he did not immediately realize. But after a game with a roar that the whole stadium could hear, he got the game-winning break.
In the second set, the game followed a different scenario. Medvedev already had a clear mental and playing advantage. He made an early break and easily held his serve. To win the match, it was necessary to do it two more times. However, the Russian made mistakes, one of which was a double, plus Tin lit up and showed a fantastic game at the net — 4:3, the break was won back.
But after odd games (except the first), there is always a break in tennis, after which Lerner's charge disappeared somewhere. Three unintelligible punches — and now Medvedev has a triple break point and a hidden matchball.
But the Russian could not apply for a ticket to the finals. Something started happening to him. The balls flew into distant outs and broke off the racket. As the game progressed, he decided to take a little break and used a trick. After showing the referee that his shoelace was untied, he did not tie it on the court, but went to his bench, slowly sat down and finally tightened the bow and the time of the match.
The trick didn't work. This did not affect the mood and psychology of Tina. He continued to push Daniel in exchanges, one of which lasted 37 strokes. After such a rally, the Russian again began to stall for time. He complained of pain in his arm and asked for a physiotherapist on the court. The medic who came out looked at the tennis player's hand in confusion, but did not understand anything. Then Medvedev told him that he would try to continue.
Once again, the pause did not affect Lerner's game, but it affected Daniil, who finally fell apart and missed the game. After that, the Russian disappeared into the podium and did not enter the court for a very long time.
Medvedev appeared at the stadium not cheerful, refreshed and energized, but tired and limping. At the start of the third set, he even decided not to invest in the shot and serve with his hand. But this trick didn't work, as Tin managed to catch up with the ball and hit the winner.
Daniel complained to his team that everything hurt him, both his arms and legs. And then he just stood up. Lerner, who made a break in the first game without any problems, started serving without getting any punches in return. Medvedev didn't even bother to pick up the ball.
The judge decided to stop the suffering, who punished the Russian for the lack of struggle. It was as if our tennis player needed it. On straight legs, writhing in pain, he hobbled to the tower with the participation of the tournament supervisor.
— Tell the camera to withdraw from the match! — Medvedev was indignant. "I'm trying my best, so why the hell am I 'not trying hard enough'?" Who are you to decide for me? Who are you? What's your name? Why is every judge in the world trying to intimidate me? After the US Open, I try to behave myself, but this guy does that. Am I supposed to be good?
The warning was not canceled. The match continued for two more games, in which it was enough for Tina to just hit the court. Daniel did not run to the balls. And only after 0:4 did the Russian stop these torments. Medvedev, as usual, did not let go of the situation quickly and, leaving the court, added sarcastic comments about the "excellent" work of the referee.
"It's a very insulting set of circumstances, it's hard to call it even a defeat," Olympic champion Elena Vesnina said in a conversation with Izvestia. — As soon as he started showing good tennis, he got a string of victories. And in the semifinals with Lerner Tin, he led in two sets. Seizures are difficult to predict, this is the most unpleasant moment for every person. And there's not much you can do when they happen to you. Danya fought and tried, but it didn't work out. It's a shame.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
