Daniil Medvedev explains shock retirement against Novak Djokovic - ‘I felt a strange pop in my adductor’
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Published 10/10/2022 at 10:39 GMT
World No. 4 Daniil Medvedev says he “felt a strange pop” in his adductor muscle which led to his mid-match retirement against Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals of the Astana Open. The match was about to go into a deciding set before Medvedev pulled out, much to the confusion of everybody with Djokovic still surprised minutes after when conducting his on-court interview.
Medvedev makes shocking mid-match retirement to give Djokovic victory in thriller
Daniil Medvedev has revealed he “felt a strange pop” in his adductor muscle which forced him to make a sudden retirement from his semi-final against Novak Djokovic at the Astana Open.
In a high-quality match, Djokovic levelled the match at 1-1 after winning a thrilling second set tie-break, before Medvedev stunned everyone by retiring.
It’s not known how serious Medvedev’s leg injury is with the race to qualify for the ATP Finals approaching its climax.
“It’s the second time in my life I retired like this with a pulled muscle,” said Medvedev. “So here, on the second point of the tie-break, I felt a little bit [of a] strange pop in my adductor.
“I first thought maybe it is cramp and after the point I was like, `No, probably not a cramp'.
Djokovic went on to win the Astana Open title when he beat Stefanos Tsitsipas in straight sets, which was his 90th career triumph.
Medvedev says he would not have played the final, had he won the tight second set tie-break.
“I actually have no idea what is fair,” he added when discussing his decision to retire.
“If I won, I would not play the final. I was like, ‘okay, I just try to hit some shots’. If I manage to win, well I cannot do anything, I will retire. If I lose, congrats to Novak, he’s still in great shape.”
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Should Medvedev not play for the rest of this month, his place at the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin, which take place from November 13 to November 20, would not be guaranteed.
He’s currently fifth in the rankings, 695 points ahead of Felix Auger-Aliassime, who is currently the first player not in a qualifying spot for the tournament.
ATP 500 events in Switzerland and Austria take place on the week beginning October 24, with the Paris Masters starting on October 31, where up to 1000 points can be won.
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