Daniil Medvedev admits Australian Open final defeat may have ‘broken’ him

Daniil Medvedev has admitted that his Australian Open final defeat to Rafael Nadal could have ‘broken him,’ but he’ll never know for sure.

Medvedev was in brilliant form in Melbourne and he looked like he was going to power to a second consecutive Grand Slam title when he went two sets up against Nadal.

However, Nadal refused to be beaten and he came back to win the match, and Medvedev has not quite looked the same player since.

Medvedev has had to contend with injury, the pressure of being world number one, and the fallout from Russia’s illegal war in Ukraine, so he is reluctant to identify that day in Melbourne as a truly impactful one on his season. He can’t rule it out either, though.

Speaking at the Astana Open, Daniil Medvedev said: “Did the final in Australia break me? It’s never known.

“This may very well be true – or it may not be true. I don’t know. I didn’t play well in Indian Wells and Miami, but I was already on a different wavelength. But the tournament in Acapulco was hard to play after the Australian final

“I also had surgery to remove an inguinal hernia. Could it also have had some consequences? Maybe yes, maybe no. For my part, I try to do my best.

“The final in Australia is already forgotten. Yes, it’s a shame, I wanted to win, but I can’t change it anymore, so the only thing left is to try to do it better next time. Even if there was an influence, I hope that I will be able to overcome it.”

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