“That’s not a good sign,” Daniil Medvedev jokes on holding match points against Andy Murray in the Doha finals

Daniil Medvedev showers praises on Andy Murray after defeating him in the finals of Qatar Open

“That’s not a good sign,” Daniil Medvedev jokes on holding match points against Andy Murray in the Doha finals

Medvedev and Murray

On Saturday, Daniil Medvedev continued his impressive form in February by winning the Qatar Open. Despite it being his first appearance in Doha, the third seed defeated Andy Murray 6-4, 6-4 to claim the championship title. Medvedev started strongly in both sets, taking a 4-1 lead in the first and a 3-1 lead in the second, and he maintained his advantage to secure victory in one hour and 47 minutes.

Although Murray managed to break Medvedev’s serve in each set, the Russian player prevented the 35-year-old from mounting a comeback, earning his 17th tour-level title. Medvedev’s win in Doha, following his victory in Rotterdam the previous week, makes him the first player to claim consecutive singles titles in the 2023 ATP Tour season. As a consequence of his success in Doha, Medvedev will surpass Rafael Nadal in the ATP Rankings, moving up to No. 7.

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Speaking after the match, the Russian said “I’d like to say how much I appreciated it today playing Andy. Yesterday I was in the gym working out and started to the do the last exercises when it was 5-4 40-0, 25 minutes later he was still on the tiebreak and won it, c*azy. Today when I had a match point I was like ‘oh my god I have a match point against Andy in Doha, that’s not a good sign’ but I had to have a match point to win. I knew it wasn’t over until the last point with him.”

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Medvedev had never lost a set to Murray in their two previous ATP Head2Head encounters. In Doha, he began the match with confidence, taking a double-break lead at 4-1, while Murray struggled to find his rhythm.

Related: WATCH: Andy Murray wins an almost lost point against Daniil Medvedev in the Doha Open finals

Andy Murray’s fantastic run ends after losing to Daniil Medvedev

Former world No.1, Andy Murray has been phenomenal in the last week and probably has played more tennis than anyone else. His grit, resilience, and determination at the age of 35 impressed many fans around the globe. However, he couldn’t continue his good run in the finals after a hard-fought four matches.

Although he started slow in the finals, the Briton managed to match Medvedev in longer rallies, displaying a clean backhand in particular. He regained one of the breaks and even had a break point opportunity at 4-5. However, Medvedev remained resolute and held his ground, preventing Murray from leveling the score and moving ahead instead.

After a hectic week for the former world No.1, he’s already prepared for the Dubai Tennis Championship later tomorrow. He will be going into the tournament as an unseeded. Murray will be facing the fifth seed Hubert Hurkacz in his first round and it will be yet another hard match-up for him. However, fans are confident that he would continue his form and win the match.

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