Andy Roddick backs Daniil Medvedev against ‘under pressure’ Stefanos Tsitsipas despite his poor clay record in past
Roddick feels Tsitsipas will be under pressure against Medvedev
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Daniil Medvedev and Stefanos Tsitsipas (Image via The Indian Express)
You definitely don’t want to miss a game when there’s a historic rivalry involved. And when there’s some verbal back-and-forth, you won’t want to miss a single point. That’s exactly what you get with the intense showdown between Daniil Medvedev and Stefanos Tsitsipas.
Their first match was at the Miami Open in 2018, where the two players met in a first round encounter. Little did fans know that they’ll play finals in the biggest of stages. However, that first match had both men exchange words. Tsitsipas calling Medvedev ‘a bushi Russian‘ with Medvedev calling the Greek ‘a kid who doesn’t know how to fight‘.
The rivalry, though isn’t only famous for the verbal exchange. A lot of high-quality tennis has been on display. Both men are ready to lock horns once again in a semi-final encounter at the Italian Open.
To preview this fiery clash, Jim Courier and Andy Roddick gave their insights. Courier backed Tsitsipas as Roddick put his money on Medvedev. “The clay suits Tsitsipas well. The fact that the weather is going to be slightly grey so it will be a good court to stick on and slide on. Tsitsipas has this forehand that is so damaging. He is able to hit it so effectively in all parts of the court,” said Courier in favor of the Greek.
In reply, Roddick said, “I am a huge fan of Daniil Medvedev, there is no secret there. The improvement in his game from not winning a single match in build up to the French Open to this time showing a lot of consistency every tournament. His movement is just insane.“ Both ex-stars have backed a player each and this promises to be an absolute cracker.
Medvedev-Tsitsipas: The story behind the rivalry
The first time both players played was in Miami in 2018. As mentioned earlier, the verbal volleys were the highlight as Medvedev eventually took the match in 3. Medvedev went on to win 5 straight encounters against the Greek and dominated the rivalry. There was resistance shown from the Greek however, Medvedev took the matches comfortably.
The rivalry intensified as soon as Tsitsipas found his feet against the Russian. Tsitsipas won his first encounter versus the Russian at the 2019 ATP finals. He ended up winning 3 of the next 5 encounters. The rivalry stands at 7-4 in the Russian’s favor as of now. Their last encounter was a thriller as Medvedev went down to the Greek in Turin. The Rome semifinal promises to be a cracker as both men, considering their past, will want to outperform the other.
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Manan Mehta
(215 Articles Published)