“I thought I’m gonna retire,” Daniil Medvedev reflects on his nasty fall at the Indian Wells Open
Daniil Medvedev admits retirement thoughts after suffering a terrible fall during the match against Alexander Zverev.
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Daniil Medvedev
At the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, Daniil Medvedev and Alexander Zverev engaged in a tightly contested match. Despite the high level of intensity exhibited on the court, the two players exchanged respectful words at the net. However, during the second set, Medvedev sustained an ankle injury that caused him to cry out in agony and fall to the ground, unable to stand. Zverev quickly rushed to his opponent’s aid and offered assistance.
Medvedev had to temporarily halt the game to receive medical attention and have his ankle taped before resuming play. He battled a nasty fall to win against Alexander Zverev in a three-set encounter 6-7(5-7), 7-6(7-5), 7-5 that lasted for over three hours. Medvedev and Zverev shared a respectful exchange at the net, where Medvedev apologized for causing a prolonged break in the match due to his ankle injury. Zverev gracefully accepted the former world No. 1’s apology.
Speaking about his injury after the match, Medvedev said, “Definitely not. I honestly, when I was lying on the ground, because as I say, the moment I fell down I was like try to stand up almost straightaway and the pain kicked in. Then even, what was it, the doctor came in first, and he said, Let’s go to the chair. I was, like, I don’t know, I’m scared to go to the chair. Then I was like, Okay, I try. So I went.”
He later added, “I thought I’m gonna retire. But I always like to give it a try. I had few times in my career where I thought I’m gonna retire, same, and I always give it a try. And if I cannot, that’s when I retire. Big example is the match against Novak, during the tiebreak I felt that I had torn the muscle. I knew it. So I finished the tiebreak, and I retired, because I knew that, well, I’m not going to play with a torn muscle.”
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Daniil Medvedev advances to the final eight at Indian Wells
In the quarterfinals of the BNP Paribas Open, Daniil Medvedev is set to face Alejandro Davidovich Fokina. Medvedev has previously won both of their encounters on the ATP tour, with his most recent victory taking place during his championship triumph at the 2023 ABN AMRO Open in Rotterdam.
The 12th-seeded Zverev fought hard and started the match on a high winning the first set. He was very close to winning the second set as it went to a tie-break too. However, an injured Medvedev was more determined to win the match and continue his streak.
Although Zverev lost in the round of 16, he can be proud of himself for the recovery he is making. Fans and experts believe he will be back at the top fighting for the titles quickly. On the other hand, Medvedev’s injury might hamper his title chances because if his recovery is not 100%, he might not play his best tennis. It will help Carlos Alcaraz, even more, to win the title being the top seed.
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Santhosh Tenneti
(308 Articles Published)