"I felt a strange pop in my abductor" - Medvedev gives reason on sudden retirement

Novak Djokovic advanced to the Astana Open final after Medvedev retired from the match and he gave a reason for the sudden retirement.

Everyone was left shocked when Medvedev suddenly shook hands with Djokovic after the Serbian took the second set. Even Djokovic was stunned after the match struggling to find words as he anticipated a huge battle in the final set.

Speaking during the post-match press conference, Medvedev explained it's a muscle issue:

“It’s the second time in my life I retired like this with a pulled muscle. 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."

Read also

2022 Astana Open Prize Money with $1,900,000 on offer

Medvedev could play and played on to try and close out the match but he knew that he wasn't going to last an entire 3rd set:

“And during the tie-break, I felt I can play like five, 10 more points but that’s it. If I play one more set, you can do it, but you can probably miss half a year instead of one month.”

He's unsure what the true reason for the sensation is but he did not want to risk it:

“I actually have no idea what is fair. If I won, I would not play the final. I was like, ‘OK, 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. Good luck to him in the final.”

Read also

Iga Swiatek books Ostrava Open final over Alexandrova