Medvedev declares he is not friends with a global tennis superstar

30/08/2025 16:22:00 pandatv

Daniil Medvedev continues to attract attention in the tennis community even though his defeat in the opening round of the 2025 US Open took place five days ago.

Recently, Daniil Medvedev revealed that he and Taylor Fritz—currently ranked fourth in the world—are no longer friends following a dispute over a practice session several years ago.

At a press conference, Medvedev recalled a memory from Wimbledon 2018 or 2019 when he and Fritz practiced together. During that time, Medvedev made a few controversial calls on balls being out. "Honestly, I never intended to cheat during practice. Sometimes you just don’t see the ball clearly. I thought it was out and signaled as such. Then my wife—who was my girlfriend back then—said Fritz called me a cheater to his coach.", Medvedev recounted.

"I was very shocked because during practice I don’t really care about winning or losing. I always try my best but never with the intention to cheat. After that incident, we barely spoke. Now, we are still not friends, but we maintain a decent relationship.", the 29-year-old player admitted.

Medvedev tuyên bố không phải là bạn với một siêu sao tennis thế giới 695132 — Daniil Medvedev and Taylor Fritz have improved their relationship but still do not consider each other friends

Daniil Medvedev unexpectedly brought up this old story with Fritz after going through a dramatic match against Benjamin Bonzi in the first round of the 2025 US Open five days ago. Unhappy with the referee’s decisions, Medvedev provoked the crowd, causing the match to be paused. Although he won two consecutive sets afterward to keep his hopes alive, the Russian player ultimately lost.

After the match, the 2021 US Open champion smashed his racket on the court and received a heavy penalty from the tournament organizers.

"What I said and did was much milder than what I actually wanted to do. I couldn’t do more because of the rules. I just expressed my dissatisfaction, and then the crowd took over. It was interesting to witness.", Medvedev explained his controversial behavior at this year’s US Open.

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