Tennis
Medvedev beat an old gamer friend. They met in a shooter
Top tennis players meet both on the court and in the virtual world.
Russian Daniil Medvedev has finally recovered from a difficult performance at the Australian Open. In the first round of the ATP 500 tournament in Dubai, he beat Alexander Shevchenko, his former compatriot, who has recently defended the flag of Kazakhstan. The tennis players have known each other for a long time and communicate well, but they did not become friends on the court.
It’s all about common hobbies outside of tennis.
Daniil won a difficult match
On the professional tour, Medvedev and Shevchenko met only once. Last year, Daniil barely broke Alexander’s resistance at the Masters in Madrid – 4:6, 6:1, 7:5. Then they still represented one country – Shevchenko announced his move to Kazakhstan in January 2024.
The second meeting between the Russian and the newly minted Kazakh player turned out to be a two-setter, but still very stubborn. In the first set, Daniil gained an advantage after a break in the fifth game, and with the score 5:2, his opponent turned to a physiotherapist – Shevchenko’s elbow hurt. After medical procedures, games were exchanged – 6:3 in favor of Medvedev. In the second set, Daniil lost 2:4 and 3:5, but managed to rally and won with a score of 7:5.
In the second round, Medvedev will meet with Indian Sumit Nagal or Italian Lorenzo Sonego. The Russian crossed paths with both tennis players and was invariably stronger: he beat the Indian at the Tokyo Olympics, and the Italian at tournaments in Adelaide and Monte Carlo.
“We wanted to look around, but he immediately ran away”
Shevchenko, having lost to Medvedev, sheathed his racket until the next tournament. But it is unlikely that he was very upset because of this defeat. Still, it’s not a sin to lose to the number four in world tennis, who is also a friend and companion… in online games.
Medvedev and Shevchenko are two avid gamers. Both prefer shooting games, strategy games or sports simulations. Their first acquaintance took place in the virtual world, and for a long time they communicated only there, without real interaction. Daniil and Alexander met live at the ATP Cup in January 2022.
— Alexander and I are good virtual friends because we play PlayStation together a lot. But we never met in real life. He always seemed cheerful and calm to me. We’ve been texting a lot lately, and I helped him with his visa. Alexander is a cool guy,” Medvedev said in an interview with the ATP press service in January 2022.
As it turned out, the tennis players’ first communication took place in a shooting game called Rainbow Six Siege. During the pandemic, both players spent a lot of time on the console, killing enemies and destroying other people’s fortifications. Then FIFA entered their circle of interests: Shevchenko played for Manchester United, and Medvedev for his beloved Bayern. Daniel also noted Alexander’s skills in the cult shooter Call of Duty.
When playing on the console, the tennis players acted as if they were on the court. Medvedev tried to act dangerously in counterattacks and look for cunning moves. Shevchenko often took unnecessary risks.
– In some games, people rush too much and get killed quickly. Alex is one of those players. For example, in Rainbow Six Siege he burst onto the field and quickly killed two or three opponents, after which he lost the round and was indignant: “Where were you guys?” We wanted to look around and understand what to do next, but he immediately ran to the battlefield,” Tennis.com portal quotes Medvedev.
Alexander will have to play alone
Daniil is generally considered one of the strongest gamers in professional sports. He plays CS: GO, footsims, Call of Duty, and many other franchises. At the same time, Medvedev tries not to combine toys and tennis, sticking to the console only during non-competition times. He also does not play in front of his daughter Alice, considering his hobby harmful to children.
Therefore, in the near future, Alexander Shevchenko will have to play without his old companion. It is worth considering that in Dubai, Daniil Medvedev had a relatively easy draw – only two potential opponents (Hubert Hurkacz and Andrey Rublev) are in the top 10. While the Russian is knocking out his opponents on the tennis court, his Kazakh friend will single-handedly defeat his virtual enemies.
Source: Sportbox
I am a sports journalist who has written for a number of Sportish. I have a background in journalism and have been writing since I was young. My main focus is sports news, but I also write about general news. I am currently working as an author at Sportish.
It will take place on January 15 draw main grill Australian Open 2026 in both men’s and women’s singles.
The ceremony will start at 05.00 Kyiv time. The video broadcast will be available on the official Australian Open website and the tournament’s YouTube channel.
The best moments of tennis matches LIVE on the Telegram channel Tennis on Sport.ua
Current major champions Jannik Sinner and Madison Keys will attend the draw ceremony.
They know their opponents Ukrainian tennis players: Elina Svitolina (WTA 12), Marta Kostyuk (WTA 20), Dayana Yastremskaya (WTA 27) and Alexandra Oleynikova (WTA 90).
Svitolina, Kostyuk and Yastremskaya rank 12th, 20th and 26th, respectively. There will be a total of 32 seeded players for both men and women.
US Open main rule matches will begin on January 18 and run through February 1.
Three Ukrainians continue to compete in the Australian Open 2026 qualifiers: Yulia Starodubtseva, Daria Snigur and Angelina Kalinina.
Australian Open 2026 draws. Rivals for Ukrainians. Watch online. LIVE
Video broadcast is available on the Australian Open YouTube channel.
Seeded tennis players and women tennis players:
Source: Sport UA
I am a sports journalist who has worked in print and online. I have authored articles for a sports website and have covered sports news for over 6 years.
Austrian tennis player Sebastian Ofner (ATP 131) suffered a disappointing defeat in the second round of the 2026 Australian Open qualifiers.
In the semi-finals of the selection, the Austrian player lost to the US representative in three sets Nisheshu Basavareddy (ATP 239) in 2 hours 32 minutes. Basavareddy took the victory over Ofner in the third set super tiebreaker.
Sebastian was ahead 7:1 in the super tiebreaker and started celebrating his victory after gaining a point. Sebastian started walking towards the goal and the referee told him the match wasn’t over yet.
As a result, Ofner lost 11:13 and missed two match points: one at 10:9 on the return, the other at 11:10 on serve.
Basavareddy will compete against George Loffagen (Great Britain, ATP 211) in the Australian Open qualifying final.
Australian Open 2026. Qualification
Nisesh Basavareddy (USA) – Sebastian Ofner (Austria) – 4:6, 6:4, 7:6 (13:11)
VIDEO. Winning gesture at 7:1 turned into failure: an epic fiasco at the Aus Open
When your brain calls the match point before the referee… pic.twitter.com/r1i49K1k2V
— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 14, 2026
Video review of Nishesh Basavareddy – Sebastian Ofner match
Source: Sport UA
I am a sports journalist who has worked in print and online. I have authored articles for a sports website and have covered sports news for over 6 years.
Tennis
The quarter-final pairings of the WTA 500 in Adelaide and the WTA 250 in Hobart tournaments have been announced.
On January 14, all second round matches in tough tournaments ended WTA 500 in Adelaide And WTA 250 in HobartIt will take place parallel to the Australian Open 2026 qualifying match (Melbourne).
In Adelaide, Dayana Yastremskaya’s felon Katerina Sinyakova lost to Diana Schneider in the second round.
The best moments of tennis matches LIVE on Telegram channel Tennis on Sport.ua
Second-seeded five-hundred Madison Keys knocked out Tereza Valentova, and eighth-seeded Victoria Mboko fought Anna Kalinskaya.
WTA 500 Adelaide. 1/8 final
topnet
🏳️Mirra Andreeva [3] – 
Maria Bouzkova [LL] – 6:3, 6:1
Maya Joynt- Ayla Tomljanovic [WC] – 0:2, RET., Tomljanovic
🏳️Diana Schneider [9] – Katerina Sinyakova [LL] – 6:1, 2:6, 7:5
Yulia Putintseva [Q] – Emma Navarro [6] – 1:6, 4:6
bottom of the network
Marketa Vondrousova – Kimberly Birrell – WO., Birrell
Daria Kasatkina – Jacqueline Christian [Q] – 4:6, 0:6
Victoria Mboko [8] – 🏳️ Anna Kalinskaya – 6:2, 3:6, 7:6 (8:6)
Teresa Valentova – Madison Keys [2] – 4:6, 1:6
WTA 500 Adelaide. Quarter final matches
topnet
🏳️Mirra Andreeva [3] – Ayla Tomljanovic [WC]
🏳️Diana Schneider [9] – Emma Navarro [6]
bottom of the network
Kimberly Birrell- Jacqueline Christian [Q]
Victoria Mboko [8] – Madison Keys [2]
Video review of match day in Adelaide
In Hobart, top seed Emma Raducanu advanced to the quarter-finals without a fight – Magdalena French withdrew from her second round match.
Olga Danilovich, who defeated McCartney Kessler and advanced to the second place, also defeated Peyton Stearns in the 1/8 final.
Third-seeded Iva Jovic crushes her opponents: The young American first gave up just one game to Janice Tjen and then defeated Renata Sarasua with scores of 6:1, 6:2. Her next opponent will be Magda Linette.
WTA 250 Hobart. 1/8 final
topnet
Emma Raducanu [1] – Magdalena French – WO., Raducanu
Rebecca Shramkova – Talia Preston [WC] – 4:6, 1:6
Iva Jovic [3] – Renata Sarasua [Q] – 6:1, 6:2
Wang Xinyu- Magda Linette [8] – 1:6, 5:7
bottom of the network
Tatyana Maria [6] – Anna Bondar – 6:7 (7:9), 5:7
Elisabetta Cocciaretto [Q] – Ann Lee [4] – 1:6, 7:5, 7:5
Antonia Ruzic – Solana Sierra – 7:5, 6:4
Peyton Stearns- Olga Danilovich – 6:7 (2:7), 1:6
WTA 250 Hobart. Quarter final matches
topnet
Emma Raducanu [1] – Talia Preston [WC]
Iva Jovic [3] – Magda Linette [8]
bottom of the network
Anna Bondar- Elisabetta Cocciaretto [Q]
Antonia Ruzic – Olga Danilovich
Video review of match day in Hobart
Source: Sport UA
I am a sports journalist who has worked in print and online. I have authored articles for a sports website and have covered sports news for over 6 years.
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