“Not a Challenger”: Daniil Medvedev Miffed With Ball Boys at ATP Finals 2021

Reigning US Open champion Daniil Medvedev is having a tough time on-court at the moment during his round-robin matchup against rising Polish tennis star, Hubert Hurkacz. The Pole won the first set in a tie-breaker and was down by a break in the second.

The duo, who started facing each other on-tour this year, began their rivalry at the Wimbledon Championships, where Hurkacz got the better off Medvedev in the round of 16. But, the Russian was quick to give it back as he clinched a straight sets victory in the quarter-finals of Montreal Masters.

Daniil Medvedev shows frustration over ball boys at World Tour Finals 2021

At the ongoing year-end championships in Turin, the World No.2 was angry at the ball boys during the first-set tie-breaker. According to Medvedev, they weren’t fast enough in exchanging the balls during the change-overs.

“This is the Masters, not a Challenger”. 

The Russian went on to blame the tournament organizers for not putting up enough balls during matches. Factually, every event on the ATP tour starts with the same number of balls and it was surprising to see Medvedev voicing out this concern at the World Tour Finals.

After the first-set debacle, Medvedev was quick to bounce back in the second and rose to a quick lead of 5-2. In all likelihood, the Russian will win the set and take the match to a decider.

Medvedev couldn’t overtake Novak Djokovic for the year-end no.1 ranking

Medvedev, who initially aimed for the year-end no.1 ranking, was over-powered by Novak Djokovic in the finals of Paris Masters. For the Russian to have claimed the no.1 rankings, the Serb shouldn’t have reached the semis in Bercy.

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Not only did Djokovic reach the semis, he went on to clinch a record 37th Masters 1000 title, surpassing peer Rafael Nadal, who won 36 titles. This victory also saw Djokovic cement his place as the no.1 ranked player on the ATP tour for a record-breaking seventh time.

In doing so, the World No.1 surpassed idol Pete Sampras, who held the year-end no.1 ranking six times in his legendary career.

Coming to Medvedev, he will have stiff competition from Hurkacz in the deciding final set as it makes up for an enthralling contest to witness for tennis fans.

Also read: Former World No.1 Warns Daniil Medvedev About His ‘New Relationship’ With Novak Djokovic