'Something magical' about 'authentic' Daniil Medvedev - Jim Courier on fans booing Russian at Australian Open

ByEurosport

Published 18/06/2022 at 11:46 GMT

"Not everyone wants to be loved by everyone. Medvedev is perfectly fine if people don’t like him." Jim Courier has hailed the world No.1 Daniil Medvedev as "authentic" and believes there is "something magical" about him because of his care-free attitude. Courier, a four-time Grand Slam champion, was reflecting on a frosty interview with the Russian during the Australian Open back in January.

Former tennis star Jim Courier believes there is “something magical” about Daniil Medvedev, hailing the world No.1 as “authentic”.

Medvedev and the four-time Grand Slam champion Courier made the headlines back in January when the Russian demanded the crowd “show some respect” for Courier during a frosty post-match interview following his victory over Nick Kyrgios at the Australian Open.

Medvedev, who will not appear at Wimbledon after Russian and Belarusian players were banned from taking part, was unhappy his interview was interrupted with jeers, and also accused the supporters who made noise between his first and second serves of having a “low IQ”.

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Reflecting on the memorable interview, Courier told The Age: “Those post-match moments with the players, where they can showcase who they are, when the mask drops for a second, are so vital for the sport.

“And not everyone wants to be loved by everyone. Medvedev is perfectly fine if people don’t like him.

“But I kind of love it about him because he’s just authentic, he’s not polished, not media trained.

“He’s just going to let you know what he’s thinking and there’s something magical about that.”

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Medvedev has been in scintillating form this week at the Terra Wortmann Open in Halle, beating Roberto Bautista Agut 6-2 6-4 to set up a semi-final with Oscar Otte.

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However, he will not be able to take that form into Wimbledon later this month following the controversial decision to ban Russian and Belarusian players from competing in the third major of the year on account of the invasion of Ukraine.

That led the governing bodies, the ATP and WTA, to announce that there would be no ranking points available at Wimbledon as not all players were allowed to compete.

2014 finalist Eugenie Bouchard has announced her withdrawal from the competition due to the decision not to award ranking points, focusing instead on the US Open and the Australian Open.

However, high-profile players such as Andy Murray and Nick Kyrgios have dismissed ranking points concerns.

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Watch daily highlights from Wimbledon at 10pm on Eurosport 2 and discovery+ from June 27, as well as the two singles finals live on July 9 and 10.

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