What was it? Medvedev sensationally flew out of a no-name at Roland Garros

A little over a week ago, Daniil Medvedev won the first clay tournament in his career in Rome. It seemed that the Russian had finally adapted to the most unloved surface for himself. Expectations from his performance at Roland Garros were very high, with a good combination of circumstances, he could even become the first racket of the world at the end of the tournament.

However, instead, there was a four-hour torment with an unknown Brazilian and a sensational departure in the first round.

There was no doubt about the victory

How good Medvedev has been in recent months. This season, he managed to take five titles and again began to show the game that brought him the title of the first racket of the world. What is especially important, Daniil sharply improved on clay, and this coating was his weak side for many years. It seemed that the problems with the soil were over. At the Masters in Rome, the Russian defeated many strong tennis players, so before the start of Rolland Garros he did not hide that he expected to go far along the grid.

It is clear that anything can happen at the Grand Slam tournaments and no one can be underestimated. Nevertheless, when it became known that Medvedev’s opponent in the first round would be the 172nd racket of the world, Thiago Seibut, there was no doubt about Daniil’s success. The Brazilian performs mainly on challengers, and he made it to the main draw of Roland Garros through three rounds of qualification.

The Russian confidently started the meeting, showing who the world tennis star is here. Only now, at the very first mistakes, Daniel suddenly began to crumble. His game became nervous, and with it his behavior on the court. Medvedev often appealed either to the ballboys or to his team.

Daniil Medvedev / Photo: © Julian Finney / Staff / Getty Images Sport / Gettyimages.ru

Medvedev’s departure left questions

Instead of an easy victory in the first set, they had to play a tie-break, in which the Brazilian turned out to be stronger. Little has changed in the second installment, except that the Russian began to make a lot of double faults. As a result, again everything was decided in a tie-break, this time Daniil was better and equalized the score in the match.

In the third set there was a long-awaited feeling that the real Medvedev had returned. No, he did not dominate completely, he just began to act more confidently and more reliably. This was enough to take the game with a score of 6:2. Already at that time, only the most madman could have imagined that the Russian would miss the victory in this meeting. However, the Brazilian had a different opinion on this matter. Thiago Seibut first equalized the score in sets, and in the decisive game he created the main sensation of Roland Garros so far. It took him 4 hours and 15 minutes to do this.

Medvedev, after a fantastic season for himself on clay, flew out at the start of the main tournament on this surface. Life can be cruel at times, although certain disturbing tendencies in Medvedev’s game can be noted. Daniil, for the fourth consecutive Grand Slam tournament, cannot go beyond the fourth round. Let’s just hope it’s just a coincidence.