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Daniil Medvedev won in straight sets with a doubles 6-3 against Alexander Zverev, in the semifinal of the China Open 2023. On the eve it seemed like it could be a balanced match, but the Russian tennis player outclassed his German rival, reaching the final in Beijing, where he will challenge Jannik Sinner.
And Medvedev, at the press conference after the victory, sent a challenging message to his next Italian rival, underlining how he is clearly ahead in head-to-head matches.
In the press conference, the Russian also said he was very satisfied with his performance and especially with his serve, continuing to fuel the controversy over the suitability of the balls used in the tournament.
The words of Daniil Medvedev at the press conference
The Russian tennis player still had issues with the balls used in the tournament: “The difference today, with the roof closed, I noticed already when hitting the balls with Sascha in the warm-up, and I thought: Wow, it’s really faster than yesterday and of the previous days.
The ball slid along the court.
Overall, today was a day where you could hit one or two good shots, and it could be enough to win the rally, which in my opinion should be hard court tennis. With the roof open it’s different.
It’s a slow ball with a hard court, not a fast ball with a normal hard court. Then, like with Ugo or Alex, you feel like you’re playing against a wall. I can’t imagine what it’s like to play against me. I don’t think it’s good because I have shoulder, elbow and wrist problems.
Today was different and it was amazing. We hope to find a solution for the balls and courts.”
On the match with Zverev, Medvedev analyzed: “Every time we play against Sascha it’s quite close. It’s a difficult match, it’s very rare that I can beat Sascha with a score like that.
He had break points in both sets. The match could have gone differently. There was nothing to change after Cincinnati, just play better and try to get break points. After the match I told him: Whoever gets the first break point in our match usually loses.
It was fun.”
Medvedev finally commented on the next match against Sinner, against whom he is unbeaten in the previous six challenges: “Against Jannik so far I have done quite well in the direct matches, but we have had different matches.
He is still very young and learns in every match. From last time we played he managed to win his first Masters 1000. It’s a great confidence boost.”
