Tennis
Medvedev is tired of playing tennis. The body of the Russian tennis player could not withstand the stress
Daniil Medvedev / Photo: © Graham Denholm / Stringer / Getty Images Sport / Gettyimages.ru
Does Daniil intend to sacrifice ranking points for an uncompromising battle with Nadal?
Russian Daniil Medvedev, after an unsuccessful attempt to compete for victory at the Australian Open, had a chance to get even with his recent offender, Jannik Sinner, in Rotterdam. However, the rematch will have to be postponed indefinitely.
Daniil’s body is simply not ready to defend the title.
“I’m looking forward to returning”
On January 28 in Melbourne, Daniil Medvedev played a difficult five-set match against Italian Jannik Sinner, but was unable to win the Australian Open. The Russian had to be content with a consolation prize and hope that in the near future he would be able to take some other title.
Ahead was a trip to Rotterdam, where the Russian could repay the debt to his recent offender, whom he had already defeated here in 2023.
From February 12 to 18, the Netherlands will host an ATP 500 tournament, the current winner of which is Medvedev. The composition of participants is expected to be decent. In addition to Sinner, Andrey Rublev, Holger Rune, Hubert Hurkacz, Alex de Minaur planned to challenge Daniil. The Russian, even in such a stellar company, could count on the first seed, but our tennis player will not be fighting for the title this time, prize money and rating points.
— Unfortunately, I have to refuse to participate in the tournament in Rotterdam. After an incredibly difficult and long tournament in Australia, my body and especially my right leg are not yet recovered enough to play and defend the title. “I enjoy playing in Rotterdam, I have a long history of participation in this tournament, and I am looking forward to returning in 2025,” the press service of the tournament in Rotterdam quotes Medvedev.
Waiting for Nadal
You can remember how in the final of the Australian Open our tennis player took a medical time-out, suffering because of a callus. But if this were the only problem, Danya could probably be expected in the Netherlands more than two weeks after the lost final. But since the Russian is not going anywhere, it means that taping alone cannot correct the situation.
But by refusing to defend the title, Medvedev will not only lose the opportunity to compete for the trophy again, but will also be guaranteed to lose 500 points. At the moment, Daniil has 8765 points, and Sinner, who is in fourth place, has 8310. Next Monday, the Russian will not lose anything, but the Italian will lose 240 points. Thus, the gap will increase to 695 points. Sinner will not be able to earn that much in Rotterdam, especially since he still has to defend 300 points for last year’s final. So it’s too early for our player to fear for third place.
When Medvedev will return to duty is still an open question. He also has an ATP 250 tournament in Doha, which starts on February 19. In terms of prestige and prospects for improving the position in the championship race, it is inferior to Rotterdam. The only obvious advantage of the competition in Qatar over the Dutch is that two representatives of the Big Four are planning to play there at once – Andy Murray and Rafael Nadal.
Daniil had never had any problems on the court with the Briton before, but he beat the legendary Spaniard only once. Perhaps the desire to better prepare for a possible meeting with the 22-time Grand Slam winner forced Medvedev to make certain sacrifices?
Source: Sportbox
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