‘He Choked in the Third Set’: John McEnroe Details How Daniil Medvedev Succumbed to Rafael Nadal

On Sunday, Rafael Nadal and Daniil Medvedev played one of the most heart throbbing finals ever at the Australian Open 2022. The final had more drama than a Hollywood movie. After winning the first two sets against Nadal, many thought the Russian will win the title easily. 

However, the Spaniard made an unbelievable comeback in the last three sets to win it all in the end. Many players would give up after losing the first two sets, but the mental toughness of Nadal was unbeatable in that match. Interestingly, American Tennis legend, John McEnroe, saw Nadal’s victory in a different way. 

McEnroe thought Daniil Medvedev choked

7-time Grand Slam champion, John McEnroe provides his expert opinion about tennis as a commentator. According to him, Daniil Medvedev lost the match rather than Rafael Nadal winning. The American believes Daniil should have won the match in the third set. Instead, he choked. 

“The turning point of the match was when Rafa served at 2-3 in the third. It felt like Rafa felt deflated. I do not want to say he was resigned because he never is, but it looked like he expected that this was about to happen and that he would end up losing in straight sets,” McEnroe said. 

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“I think Medvedev played a couple, I do not want to say careless, but maybe loose points… He choked in the third set at that point, as he should have been 4-2 in front. But once he let Rafa back in, that allowed the crowd to get back in, which was one of the most extraordinary efforts I have ever seen,” the American further stated. 

Rafa’s historic win in Australia

After his Australian Open triumph, Rafa became the only man in history to win 21 Grand Slam titles, surpassing Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic. This win was quite emotional for Nadal, as he wasn’t even sure about taking part in the Australian Open because of a foot injury. 

“For me it’s just amazing. A month-and-a-half ago I didn’t know if I’d be back and today I’m back here with you holding this trophy,” Nadal said after the match. 

Even though Medvedev lost the match, he had a fantastic tournament. Pretty soon, he will also become the no.1 tennis player in the world if he continues to play like this. 

Did Medvedev choke during the match? Let us know in the comments.

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