Daniil Medvedev stormed off court at the Canadian Open after another dismal loss. The Russian, who has endured a tough year and seen his ranking tumble, was beaten in the second round by Alexei Popyrin.
Popyrin came from a set down to win 5-7 6-4 6-4. It was another poor performance from Medvedev, whose form has been hugely underwhelming all year. The Russian struggled to find his rhythm and failed to deal with Popyrin. Medvedev has now gone two years without a title and the frustration is clearly getting to the world No. 1.
As soon as Popyrin won match point, Medvedev turned around and walked straight off the court. The 29-year-old did not stop to collect his bag or spare rackets.
A young Canadian Open official was left to awkwardly sort Medvedev’s rackets into his bag and return them to the world No. 14. It is unclear if Popyrin noticed the incident, but the Australian was busy fist-pumping to his team, who were in the crowd.
With the US Open approaching and the final chance to perform well in a Grand Slam, Medvedev will need to improve his form immediately. His best performance in a major this year was the second round at the Australian Open.
He was dumped out of the first rounds at the French Open and Wimbledon. After being beaten by Quentin Halys at Wimbledon, Medvedev said: “I would be very worried if not for the Halle tournament, where I played well and managed to be in the final, playing a great level.
“That’s why I can compare today’s match to this tournament. I feel like I didn’t play much worse. Court is a bit different. Tiny bit slower with the heat also. But every shot I played today, even good shots, he had an answer.
“I was supposed to play him or [Quentin] Halys in Halle. I watched the match. He couldn’t play two balls in the court – not two in a row. Today he barely missed. A little on the forehand, the backhand I remember maybe three unforced errors. I wish him to play like this.
“I saw the draw. If he plays how he did today, he’s definitely in the fourth round. Then it’s [Taylor] Fritz. Then it’s tougher. But I would not be surprised if he doesn’t play like this.”
Medvedev was then accused of being disrespectful towards his opponent by adding: “Why not play like this every day, win millions, be rich? No, he decides to do it once a year.”
