"Daniil Medvedev doesn't care... he won't reply at all" - Andrey Rublev hilariously snubs compatriot as his 'emergency contact'
Andrey Rublev hilariously snubbed Daniil Medvedev, suggesting that he wouldn't have the latter as his emergency contact. Medvedev though, had earlier said that Rublev would be his emergency contact in tennis. The 26-year-old produced the comic moment after his third-round win over Jiri Lehecka at the ongoing 2024 US Open on Friday, August 30.
The World No. 6, was devastating with his first serve against Lehecka, winning a remarkable 89 per cent of points (48/54) behind it. He was also clinical with his return game, engineering 16 breaking points and converting five of them. Ultimately, No. 32 seed Lehecka was no match for Rublev, with the Russian registering a dominant 6-3, 7-5, 6-4 win over the Czech.
Following the conclusion of the contest, Rublev stayed back on the Grandstand court for his post-match, on-court interview. During the interview, he was asked who his emergency contact in tennis would be in light of compatriot Medvedev saying that he would have Rublev as his emergency contact. The World No. 6 hilarously said that he wouldn't bank on the World No. 5 picking up his calls or responding to his messages.
"Uhh.. I would definitely not call him.. because he doesn’t care. He would be sleeping or he won’t reply at all," Rublev said.
Medvedev and Rublev share a close relationship. The former World No. 1 chose Rublev as his daughter Alisa's godfather in April last year. On the tennis front, both Russians have so far been going strong at the US Open. However, Rublev is likely to face a sterner test of his title credentials in the fourth round, where he is set to lock horns against World No. 9 Grigor Dimitrov.
Andrey Rublev has a narrow edge over Grigor Dimitrov in the pair's head-to-head going into their US Open 2024 4R clash
Rublev and Dimitrov, who are also quite close friends on the ATP Tour, have faced each other on seven previous occasions. The Russian has a slight edge over the Bulgarian in their head-to-head, leading 4-3.
The last time Rublev and Dimitrov locked horns was in the semifinals of the 2023 Rolex Shanghai Masters, where the Russian emerged victorious in straight sets [7-6(7), 6-3].
Dimitrov has so far been in imperious form at Flushing Meadows. The Bulgarian is yet to drop a set, having cruised to wins over Kyrian Jacquet, Rinky Hijikata, and Tallon Griekspoor across the first three rounds of the prestigious hardcourt Major.