'I freaking can't pee?' – Daniil Medvedev rages at umpire in match against 'dinosaur' Maxime Cressy at Australian Open

ByEurosport

Updated 24/01/2022 at 09:15 GMT

“I freaking can't pee! Who makes these rules?” raged Daniil Medvedev at the umpire during his last-16 win over Maxime Cressy at the Australian Open in the searing heat in Melbourne Park. The Russian cut a frustrated figure throughout the four-set win as the serve-and-volley game of Cressy frustrated the consensus favourite for the tournament.

Daniil Medvedev was left raging during his 6-2 7-6(4) 6-7(4) 7-5 win against Maxime Cressy on Margaret Court Arena on Monday. Eurosport pundit John McEnroe said he understood the Russian's frustrations against a player he termed - in a complimentary manner - a dinosaur.

The consensus favourite for the tournament cut a frustrated and, at times, irate figure during the last-16 showdown as Cressy’s throwback serve-and-volley game befuddled the 25-year-old.

The world No. 2 would ultimately prevail to set up a showdown with Felix Auger-Aliassime in the last eight but not before he had remonstrated with himself, his opponent and the umpire. The most notable moment came after the third game of the fourth and deciding set when he exclaimed.

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“For who are the rules? I cannot go pee but he [Cressy] can wait seven seconds [to serve] and you don’t say anything,” began Medvedev

An increasingly irate Medvedev then began to look around, before shouting:

“The rules are for who? The rules are for who? Who are the rules for? Who makes these rules?”

The Russian had also been heard shouting “this is so boring” and “It’s simply unbelievable how lucky he is getting, it’s insane I’ve never seen anything like it” as his frustration boiled over on Margaret Court Arena.

• ‘This is so boring!’ - Medvedev unhappy with own behaviour in win over Cressy
• Medvedev overcomes awkward Cressy to move into quarters

And talking on the Cube to Alize Lim, Tim Henman and Mats Wilander, John McEnroe said that he understood the frustrations of Medvedev, calling Cressy, in a backhanded compliment, a tennis dinosaur.

'Medvedev was very irritable but I bet he said sorry' - McEnroe

"Maxime Cressy is like a dinosaur in tennis terms, to the point where a frustrated Medvedev said, ‘this is so boring!’. When you look at the draw Cressy is the type of guy you don’t want to play. He takes the racquet out of your hands and you don’t get the rhythm you want,” said McEnroe.

"I totally get Medvedev today, he thought he could just do enough today. I don’t understand, however, why he doesn’t change court positions more often.

“But listen, Daniil is a great player, he is my favourite player to watch on tour at the moment, it’s like watching a chess master, it’s awesome.

“He’s doing fine on his own without my help, but it seems to me like he’s staying too far back too often giving a guy like Cressy a lot of angles to work with. Sooner or later, it’s going to catch up with him and there will be some wear and tear in those legs. He’s running around a lot more than guys he’s beating – I want him to be around for another 5-8 years."

'I need to change, it's impossible!' - Watch Medvedev rant at umpire, opponent, official

Medvedev explained his behaviour in his post-match press conference with Barbara Schett.

“During the match I got a little bit crazy, I think with myself,” he said.

“I even went a little bit - I don’t want to say the surname - but some other style, tried to talk something in the air. Get into his mind a little bit.

“Maybe he’ll [Cressy] be saying ‘what the hell is Medvedev saying’ and maybe, I don’t know, he’ll miss some shots.

“I’m not happy with what I said today but most important is that I managed to continue fighting.”

Medvedev picked up a maiden Grand Slam at the US Open in 2021, and should he navigate his way past Felix Auger-Aliassime, he could face Stefanos Tsitsipas, Taylor Fritz, or Jannik Sinner in the semi-finals.

Highlights: Irritable Medvedev battles past Cressy in heated clash

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