“I’m like throw him out, it’s the rule” – Daniil Medvedev on confronting hecklers at US Open
Daniil Medvedev reiterated his viewpoint on dealing with hecklers in the stands following his fourth-round victory over Alex de Minaur at the US Open on Monday, September 4.
With his triumph over De Minaur, Medvedev booked his berth in the last-eight stage and is set to compete against compatriot Andrey Rublev for a place in the semifinals.
According to Medvedev, he is more annoyed with the hecklers because he bounces the ball fewer times than most other players before serving.
"It's super annoying, especially for me because why - how you call it - bounce the ball. Some players bounce 10, 15 times, sometimes 6. I usually do two or three..., so it actually throws me out a lot," he said during the post-match press conference.
However, the Russian was happy to play in front of a "respectful" crowd at Louis Armstrong Stadium on Monday.
"Today, I don't know what's the reason why before it was not like this."
"Today was super respectful. I don't think there was one guy who was cheering between first and second serve, shouting or clapping. It was amazing feeling to play like this," he said.
But the third seed held his ground over sending a spectator out of the stadium should they cause any disturbance, which is stipulated in the rulebooks.
"Again, if the rule one day is going to change, I'm not going to argue against this anymore. For the moment the rule on the tennis court you cannot do it. If the guy does it two times, I'm like throw him out, he cannot do it, it's the rule," Daniil Medvedev added.
"Really happy and excited always to come back here" - Daniil Medvedev on playing at the US Open
During the press conference, Daniil Medvedev also suggested that he has connected with the spectators wonderfully at his year's US Open.
"The energy of the crowd is amazing. My relationship this year is amazing with the crowd. It is as I say, sometimes it is maybe five, ten guys that try to throw you off between first and second serve. Today was not the case," he said.
The World No. 3 continued:
"In general the relationship has been great ever since 2019 final. In terms of the crowds, one of the best tournaments I play during the year. Really happy and excited always to come back here."
Daniil Medvedev has appeared in two finals at the New York Major. The Russian lost the summit clash to Rafael Nadal in 2019, but two years later, he was able to kiss the trophy in Queens as he outperformed Novak Djokovic in straight sets.