"Not sure after 30 years I'm going to want to play tennis" - When Daniil Medvedev spoke about crowd supporting Rafael Nadal in Australian Open final
Daniil Medvedev once spoke about the crowd supporting Rafael Nadal and booing him during the Australian Open final.
The two played a sensational match in 2022, with Nadal coming back from two sets down to win 2-6, 6-7(7), 6-4, 6-4, 7-5 and clinch his second title at the Melbourne Major.
The crowd at the Rod Laver Arena was on Rafael Nadal's side throughout the encounter, and often booed Medvedev. Medvedev was asked in his post-match press conference whether the spectators put him off. The Russian initially refused to answer the question, saying:
"I'm not going to answer questions about my story, sorry."
When asked again regarding the matter, the Russian said he would be surprised if even one person would be cheering for him before Nadal's serve. Medvedev called the crowd "disappointing" and "disrespectful" and said that he wasn't sure he would be playing tennis past the age of 30.
"I'm just going to give one small example. Before Rafa serves even in the fifth set, there would be somebody, and I would even be surprised, like one guy screaming, C'mon, Daniil. A thousand people would be like, Tsss, tsss, tsss. That sound. Before my serve, I didn't hear it," the Russian said.
"It's disappointing. It's disrespectful, it's disappointing. I'm not sure after 30 years I'm going to want to play tennis," he added.
Rafael Nadal leads 5-1 in the head-to-head against Daniil Medvedev
Nadal and Medvedev have locked horns on six occasions, with the Spaniard leading 5-1 in the head-to-head between the two.
The first encounter between the two came in the final of the 2019 Canadian Open, with Nadal thrashing the Russian 6-3, 6-0. That year, they also locked horns in the US Open final, where Medvedev put up a tough fight before losing 5-7, 3-6, 7-5, 6-4, 4-6.
Nadal continued his winning run against the Russian as he narrowly beat him 6-7(3), 6-3, 7-6(4) at the 2019 ATP Finals in the round-robin stage.
Medvedev's only win over the King of Clay came in the semifinals of the 2020 ATP Finals in London. He won 3-6, 7-6(4), 6-3 to reach the final, where he went on to defeat Dominic Thiem.
The 2022 Australian Open final was the fifth meeting between the two, and they also locked horns in the semifinals of the Mexican Open a month later. Nadal came out on top in Mexico too, winning 6-3, 6-3.