Daniil Medvedev claims tennis fans ‘were lying’ about supporting next generation
Daniil Medvedev has criticised the lack of support given to him and and other young players after receiving little encouragement in their matches against Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer.
The ‘Big Three’ usually draw large crowds with the majority of which support them as opposed to their opponents. This was evident in the Australian Open final between Nadal and US Open champion Medvedev.
Nadal was spurred on by nearly the whole Rod Laver Arena when he rallied from behind to overturn a two-set deficit and win a record-breaking 21st Grand Slam title.
Meanwhile, World number two Medvedev was met by boos after he provoked the Melbourne Park spectators throughout the Australian Open, starting in his second round match against home favourite Nick Kyrgios when he said some disruptive fans had a “low IQ.”
Medvedev then antagonised the Australian crowds even further when he revealed he “thought what would Djokovic do?” in his impressive comeback against Felix Auger-Aliassime.
Djokovic became a largely unpopular figure Down Under this year after his covid-19 vaccination and medical exemption antics saw him get deported just one the before the ‘Happy Slam’ got underway.
Russian number one Medvedev also hinted that his nationality may have played a part in the unwelcoming and hostile reception he received at the first Slam of the season.
Medvedev, alongside Olympic gold medallist and ATP Finals winner Alexander Zverev and World number four Stefanos Tsitsipas, fronts the leading pack that look set to follow in the ‘Big Three’s’ wake.
Speaking in the aftermath of his Australian Open final defeat, Medvedev said “when I also started to get just a little bit higher, like top 20, top 30, started to play Roger [Federer], Novak [Djokovic], Rafa [Nadal]. We made some tough matches. I haven‘t beat them yet.
“There was a lot of talks. I don’t think there is that much right now, but I remember there were a lot of talks, ‘young generation should do better’, or there were talks like people saying ‘we really want young generation to go for it, to be better, to be stronger.’
“I was like pumped up. Yeah, let‘s try to give them hard time and everything.
“Well, I guess these people were lying because, yeah, every time I stepped on the court in these big matches, I really didn’t see much people who wanted me to win.
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