“I play one more set, you can do it, but you can probably miss half a year instead of one month.” – Medvedev

Russia’s Daniil Medvedev said that he felt a strange pop in his adductor in the second set tiebreaker which was the reason he pulled out of the semi-final clash against Novak Djokovic at the Astana Open on Saturday.

Djokovic had just won the second set 7-6 (8-6) after Medvedev had won the first set 6-4 to set the stage for an exicting third set to decide who takes on Stefanos Tsitsipas in the Astana Open final. But the Russian called it quits right after the end of the second set, much to the surprise of his opponent and the fans.

Speaking later to the press, Medvedev explained what led to his decision to pull out. “It’s the second time in my life I retired like this with a pulled muscle,” Medvedev said as quoted by the ATP Tour. “So here, on the second point of the tie-break, I felt a little bit [of a] strange pop in my adductor. I first thought maybe it is cramp and after the point I was like, `No, probably not a cramp.”

Medvedev said he did not want to risk getting injured for a longer period of time and hence decided to retire from the contest. “And during the tie-break, I felt I can play like five, 10 more points but that’s it. If I play one more set, you can do it, but you can probably miss half a year instead of one month.”

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“If I (had) won, I would not play the final” – Medvedev

The Russian went on to add that had he won the tie-break, he would have withdrawn from Sunday’s final against Tsitsipas. “I actually have no idea what is fair,” Medvedev continued. “If I (had) won, I would not play the final. I was like, ‘OK, I just try to hit some shots’. If I manage to win, well I cannot do anything, I will retire. If I lose, congrats to Novak, he’s still in great shape. Good luck to him in the final.”

Djokovic went on to win the title in Astana, beating Tsitsipas in straight sets and secure his berth in the season-ending ATP Finals. With five spots already filled up, Medvedev is currently the next player in the race standings.

The Russian, ranked No 4 in the world, is scheduled to next play in Vienna, which starts on October 22, and the Paris Masters the following week.

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