Daniil Medvedev breezed through his Indian Wells opener on Saturday before the Russian tennis star sent a pointed message in the direction of Carlos Alcaraz. In his first match at the tournament in the United States, Medvedev made light work of Yunchaokete Bu by sealing a 6-2, 6-2 victory. But the underlying theme to matches at the ATP 1000 Masters event has been bubbling away after players, including Alcaraz, complained about the state of the court last week.
And Medvedev, 29, had a special message reserved for the Spaniard, 21, after writing on the camera lens following his success in California. It is customary for players to write messages or sign camera lenses using a marker. But rather than paying tribute to the fans, Medvedev penned a cheeky jab at Alcaraz and wrote: « 6-2, 6-2, 1h 36m, very fast court [happy face]. » Then, after the match, he playfully suggested the court was the exact opposite.
« It’s probably the slowest court I’ve ever played in my life, » Medvedev said. « Every people [everyone] has got a different feeling about this court. But ask Sascha [Alexander Zverev] or Casper [Ruud]. They will say it’s slow. At some point, I thought it would be impossible to hit a winner. »
While Medvedev’s comments may seem confusing without context, the world No. 5’s response comes after Alcaraz questioned the decision of Indian Wells officials to lay down a new court surface prior to the tournament. Players had reported experiencing the ball moving faster than they were used to after the new surface had been put in place, while Zverev and Ruud both experienced shock early exits from the tournament on Friday.
“The court is faster, right? I don’t know, » Alcaraz said on March 4. « Honestly, it’s a change that I didn’t understand when I saw it, it was 25 years the tournament, it was the same court, and then right now has changed.
« I don’t know the reason why did it. I don’t know. I have to practice on it. I think I consider myself a player who [can] adapt very well his game, on the surfaces and all the conditions that you’re playing on. I think I play great tennis anyway, even though the courts are a bit faster. But all I can say is I didn’t understand when I saw it.”
Other players aside from Medvedev have publicly disagreed with the Spaniard’s comments, however, with Holger Rune claiming faster courts will improve play on the ATP Tour.
« In general, I think it is better if all the tournaments on the ATP Tour become a little faster, because the balls are slow these days. It makes the games cooler because you have the slow balls, but the slightly faster courts. It makes the game quite interesting, » Rune said.
« There are too many fast balls on fast courts and slow balls on slow courts. So I think that Indian Wells and other tournaments are trying to find a fine balance, and that’s good for the players. »
Alcaraz will put his abilities to the test when he takes on Quentin Halys in his first match of the tournament on Saturday evening.
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