“It’s a piece of garbage,” Daniil Medvedev fumes over ‘new ball’ after Miami Open disappointment
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Daniil Medvedev
Daniil Medvedev was among the Russian athletes that had to face the brunt of the consequences after their country launched a full-fledged invasion of Ukraine. This vile move was met with stringent sanctions on Russian athletes.
While other sports, including football and figure-skating, banned Russian athletes from competing in international competitions, the tennis governing bodies stopped short of a blanket ban and suspended the federations of both Russia and Belarus, only allowing their athletes to compete under a neutral flag.
Daniil Medvedev criticizes new ball after defeat
Daniil Medvedev was one win away from replacing Novak Djokovic at the top of the ATP rankings for the second time this year, but it was not to be for the Russian. Playing against Hubert Hurkacz in the quarterfinals of the 2022 Miami Masters, the Russian succumbed to a 7-6(7), 6-3 loss.
During the match, Medvedev complained about the quality of the balls, suggesting they were not up to the standards expected in a Masters 1000 event. The 26-year-old went down an early break to begin the first set, and although he managed to recover his rhythm to take it to a tie-break, he was unable to gain the upper hand and lost it 9-7. The second set started off much better for the reigning US Open champion, where he held his first two service games for a 2-1 lead.
But during the changeover, the former World No. 1 brought up his issue with the Dunlop balls being used at the event. Looking straight into a courtside camera, the annoyed Russian told viewers not to buy the balls since they were “a piece of garbage.” The 26-year-old was of the opinion that fans would be better off spending their money somewhere else.
“Never ever advise anybody to buy this ball; it’s a piece of garbage, you’re just gonna lose your money,” fumed Medvedev.
He went on to lose two of his next three service games to crash out of the event in tame fashion. It should be noted though that the World No. 2 was visibly exhausted during the latter stages of the match, even requesting the help of a physio before his last service game.
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