"Tennis drives me crazy": Daniil Medvedev makes interesting admission despite cementing China Open quarterfinal berth

Russia’s Daniil Medvedev has admitted that playing tennis ‘drives’ him ‘crazy’. The 29-year-old has been in the news about his behaviour on the court. The most recent incident which brought Medvedev in the spotlight for wrong reasons again came at the US Open. Medvedev suffered a hard-fought defeat in the first round of the fourth and final Grand Slam of the year to France’s Benjamin Bonzi in a five-set thriller with a score of 6-3, 7-5, 6-7, 0-6, 6-4. At one stage, the match looked completely one-sided as Medvedev was facing a match point in the third set. At that stage, Medvedev became furious when chair umpire Greg Allensworth awarded a first serve to Bonzi while asking the cameraman, a US Open photographer, who had encroached onto the court in anticipation that the match would soon finish. As soon as Allensworth announced it, Medvedev went to the chair umpire and argued about the decision. "Are you a man? Are you a man? Why are you shaking? What's wrong, huh?" said Medvedev then. He then went on to remind the crowd sitting in the arena abou what America’s Reilly Opelka had to say about the same umpire in the past. "What did Reilly Opelka say?,” asked Medvedev. “He earns by the match, not by the hour. Umpire just wants to go home." He then screamed three times: "What did Reilly Opelka say?" before returning to his baseline. The incident ended up costing Medvedev a collective fine of more than $40,000, out of which nearly 75 percent was for his ‘unsportsmanlike conduct’ and the rest was for the abuse of equipment. Medvedev is currently taking part in the China Open where he cemented his spot in the quarterfinal after beating Spain’s Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in straight sets with a score of 6-3, 6-3. Medvedev spoke to the media after the match where he made an interesting statement about tennis. Medvedev stated that tennis remains a ‘beautiful sport’ but it sometimes drives him ‘crazy’. “The thing about tennis—what is beautiful about the sport, what is the toughest thing—is that I act a little bit crazy on the court sometimes,” admitted Medvedev. “So many amateur people come to me in France or in Monaco and say, ‘Look, I’m like you. I’m calm in life, calm on the road, calm even if I argue with my wife. But when I play tennis, I go nuts.’ Tennis can drive you crazy. Me, it drives me crazy.” Despite making it to the quarterfinal of the China Open, Medvedev continues to have a very average year according to his own high standards. Overall, Medvedev has won just 26 out of 44 matches and has not won any competition since the start of 2024. Medvedev was asked about the reason behind decline in his form and the former US Open winner had no clear answer. “You ask me why I had a bad year? I don’t have the exact answer,” said Medvedev. “It could be my second daughter. It could be my relationship, I don’t know, with Gilles. It could be that I became older and started thinking more than when I was younger. It could be just bad luck or maybe physically I was not feeling well somewhere. You never know. For sure I was concerned [about my form]. I’m still concerned. I’m trying to find a way to show everyone that I’m capable of doing big things again.” Medvedev’s next round opponent will be Germany’s Alexander Zverev. The 28-year-old defeated France’s Corentin Moutet in the round of 16 with a score of 7-5, 3-6, 6-3. It will be the 21st meeting between the two players in professional tennis. In the previous 20 meetings, Medvedev had a clear advantage where he won 13 times and suffered just seven defeats.