"Starting the first match at 7pm is just asking for trouble" - Medvedev criticises late starts at Australian Open while requesting earlier start time

Daniil Medvedev has shared his frustrations about evening matches at the Australian Open, consistently continuing his complaints on the late starts and even later finishes in Melbourne, which has motivated him to plea for an earlier start time.

The Australian Open in synonymous with having matches that go on into the dead of night, sometimes finishing just before the sun is set to rise. Some epic battles have been shown across the years, with fans staying up way past their bedtime to get a glimpse of this tennis being played.

Some well-known examples include Andy Murray's fightback against Thanasi Kokkinakis back in 2023. The Aussie led by two sets in the final tie of the day but the five-time finalist clawed his way back into it, finally winning a titanic battle in five sets at 4:08 in the morning. Another example comes back in 2008 with another Aussie, Lleyton Hewitt, in action. The two-time Grand Slam champion saw himself be engulfed in a battle with Marcos Baghdatis, eventually getting the better of him at the late time of 4:34 am. He had to get up the next day and play his fourth round match, which was against the eventual champion Novak Djokovic. He put up a good battle but was ultimately defeated in straight sets.

Adding to his criticisms, Medvedev has also been in a late-night battle of his own. On his way to the 2024 final, he faced off against Emil Ruusuvuori. It was a five-set thriller which saw the Russian close a two-set deficit before whitewashing his tired opponent in the final set to make it through to the third round, culminating at 3:39 am. He did not go to bed until 7am.

The former US Open champion spoke ahead of the Brisbane International, firmly stating his opinions on the night matches while not holding back. "I'm not against playing at night, don't get me wrong, but starting the first match at 7pm is just asking for trouble," he said. "When you have one - or in my case two - five-set matches, it's too late. Move them to 6pm, that's it."

His argument is to move the night matches an hour earlier than the current 7pm slot the currently begin at. If this is the case, then it could help tennis players go to bed at a fairly reasonable time if they are in a long tie, but it still would be a long way off their bedtime.

The Australian Open has been happy hunting ground for the 29-year-old previously making three finals. His first one in 2021 saw him lose out to 10-time champion Novak Djokovic. A year later, he blew a two-set lead against Rafael Nadal before repeating the fate against Jannik Sinner in 2024, which saw the Italian clinch his first major title.

After a dreadful 2025 which saw him win just one Grand Slam matches, he will be hoping for a much better return in 2026. He begins his year at the Brisbane International, where he made the final back in 2019. “I have great memories of Brisbane,” he said. “I love the city, I love coming back. I made it to the finals last time - let's see if I can play even better this time."

This is all to get his body int he perfect shape for what he hopes to be a deep run in Melbourne. The end of 2025 saw his form pick up a bit, ending his title drought with success in the Almaty Open amid making a couple of deep runs in Masters 1000 tournaments. "I love the Australian Open,” he admitted. “I feel like I can play my best there. When I’m at my best, I know I can beat anyone. I like hard courts, especially the fast ones in Melbourne."