Australian Open: the Medvedev-Tsitsipas rivalry and the day the Russian wanted to hit the Greek after a match

They weren’t friends, but they had a good vibe. It was November 2017 and the Next Generation Masters was going to be played in Milan for the first time. Daniil Medvedev I was 21 years old and Stefanos Tsitsipas, 19. The Russian was classified; the Greek was listed as a substitute in the event of a desertion. In one of the days of contact with the media, Tsitsipas assumed the role of “journalist”, as a parody. Good humor reigned. Unwrapped, he approached Medvedev and asked:

-Favorite football club?

-Bayern Munich.

– And from Russia?

-Rostov. I don’t know if you know him.

-Of course I know him! FC Rostov.

-You are the best journalist in this tournament!

It all ended with a laugh from the protagonists of the note and those present at the press conference. TJust one year later, they almost fell apart during a match in Miami… Well, actually, Medvedev “went up in smoke.”

The traditional Masters 1000 of that city was played, for a long time, symbolically considered as the fifth Grand Slam. It was the first match that crossed them as professionals. The Russian triumphed 2-6, 6-4, 6-2 and they greeted each other on the side of the court, very close to the chair umpire. Suddenly, Tsitsipas muttered something that drove Medvedev crazy. He faced the other side of the court, where the Greek was accommodating the racket bag to leave, and the chair umpire went down quickly, sensing what could arise. He managed to stop it. But nothing stopped the fury. “Fucking Russian” had been the trigger phrase.

“You better keep your mouth shut, okay? Hey Stefanos, do you want to look at me and talk? Do you rush to the bathroom for five minutes and then don’t apologize after a let ball? Do you think you are a well-behaved child? Look at me, look at me!” Medvedev shouted, while Tsitsipas did not say a word. “He started. He told me ‘Russian shit’. Is that okay?” he asked the umpire, who continued to calm him down. “He is a little boy who does not know how to fight. Talk and then don’t fight. I answer for that, “added the Russian. Tsitsipas left the court looking at the ground. Nothing would be the same between the two.

Get Medvedev!

Medvedev and Tsitsipas, two of the players who will take over from the Big Three in the coming years of tennis, They will meet this Friday, from 5:30 in Argentina, in one of the semifinals of the Australian Open, after the other clash between the Spanish Rafael Nadal and the Italian Matteo Berrettini. It is a rivalry that grew over time, although in the last few hours both tried to lower his profile. But that episode in Miami, resounding and unpleasant, was not the only point of contention between the two.

A few months later, they played again at the US Open and the Russian won again, this time in four sets. Tsitsipas did not refer to the Miami episode, but Medvedev did, who recounted some peculiarities: the blockade he suffered on social networks and the curiosity that their parents have a better relationship than they do…

“I haven’t spoken to Stefanos since that day in Miami. The truth is, I’m not angry, but he has to take responsibility for what he says on the court. I can go overboard sometimes, but I usually apologize. He didn’t apologize. It was a mistake. It’s more, then he blocked me on instagram! But at the same time he congratulated me after the game. We are not enemies. Even our parents are friends.”

A month later, at the Basel tournament, the third chapter. With a message on Instagram included. Medvedev’s third triumph, which is not characterized by externalizing too much on the court, except this year at the Australian Open, with his anger with the public. That time in the Swiss tournament, after winning the quarterfinals 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, he celebrated with euphoria, almost with rage. And he wrote on his social network with irony: “Oops, I’ve done it again.”

The ironic message on Instagram

Two new Russian victories in 2019, the last at the Shanghai Masters 1000, started a phrase from Tsitsipas that was not exactly to generate calm. “I don’t want to be unpleasant, I really don’t, but it’s so boring… It’s so boring that…” Medvedev took the phrase as referring to his tennis. Tsitsipas later said that he did not actually express what was understood. The Russian was categorical: “It is clear that we are not friends, but neither are we enemies. Just colleagues.”

Until the Greek’s first victory came, at the 2019 London Masters. “It was the most important victory of my life,” he said. It was clear that a load had been lifted off him. “The Miami thing? He wanted me to apologize for the let, I was focused on the game. He looked at me intimidatingly, he demanded of me. I said what I said and I regret it. We are not friends, we are not going to have dinner together. We don’t have much in common. It happens a lot on the circuit. But it’s not that I hate him. I respect it,” Stefanos said.

“We respect each other as tennis players, but on a personal level, not so much. We don’t have any kind of relationship. Now, because of the top 3 especially (Nadal, Federer and Djokovic), this sport is seen as ultra, ultra conservative and very smart sport. So we young people have to follow that path, otherwise we will be battered by the media and the public. In other sports, you can see these rivalries where people get fired up. But tennis is not like that. I don’t think there will be a confrontation between us. I think it’s a shame, it could be much more fun, “retorted Medvedev, during Roland Garros 2021.

History favors Russian 6-2.

And now? There will be fire in center during the semifinal of the Australian Open 2022? Tsitsipas lowered anxiety and chose healthy speech. “I think our relationship improved after the Laver Cup. We haven’t spoken again in recent months, but our relationship is that of some competitors who aspire to the same dream on the pitch”. Like a page turn for a rivalry that may not offer chapters like the one in Miami again. At least the Greek knows how Medvedev will react if he goes off the rails…