"No response. I will see what happens next" - Medvedev on possible Wimbledon ban

Reigning US Open champion Daniil Medvedev has said he will take his season ‘tournament by tournament’ as he shrugs off talk of a potential ban on Russian players at this year’s Wimbledon Championships.

Earlier this month British lawmakers discussed entry requirements for Russian athletes competing in light of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine which began on February 24th. Sports minister Nigel Huddleston told the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) committee there is possible that those athletes would only be allowed to compete if there are not supporters of president Vladamir Putin.

Questioned about the prospect of a possible ban from SW19 if he didn’t criticize President Putin ahead of the Miami Open, Medvedev shrugged off the threat and refused to get drawn into the debate. He said:

“Don’t have any response to Wimbledon. I will need to see what happens next. I try to take it tournament by tournament. I mean, there are always different rules, regulations in order to play or not to play."

He further said:

“Right now I’m here in Miami. I can play and I’m happy to play tennis, the sport I love. I want to promote the sport all over the world. We’ll have tough moments and good moments. That’s going to be the same with every tournament. So the next one after this one is Monte-Carlo, you know, where at this moment I’m a resident there, so I love this tournament also. I can play it normally and I’m happy to play it.”