2023-11-01 22:13:10
World No.3 Daniil Medvedev fell at the start of the Masters 1000 in Paris in the second round on Wednesday, like Carlos Alcaraz the day before, and clashed with the public in the process. World No.1 Novak Djokovic avoided the same fate with complete peace of mind.
Holger Rune (7th), outgoing champion, was quick to enter the fray, winning 6-4, 6-2 over Dominic Thiem (108th), when world No.4 Jannik Sinner, visibly tired, with heavy legs, sitting occasionally on the railing at the edge of the court, went to the end of himself and at the end of the night – 2:37 a.m. – to overthrow the American Mackenzie McDonald (42nd) 6-7 (6/8), 7-5, 6-1.
In an electric atmosphere, Alexander Zverev (9th) overcame 6-4, 6-7 (3/7), 7-6 (7/5) the last Frenchman in the running, Ugo Humbert (26th), at the end of a crazy match lasting 3 hours 29 minutes.
Earlier, it was the Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov (17th) who defeated Medvedev, 6-3, 6-7 (4/7), 7-6 (7/2), in almost three hours.
The match within the match pitted Medvedev, known for his mood swings, against the electric crowd at Bercy. “I’m not going to play when they whistle,” the Russian told the referee, whistled after throwing his racket when he allowed Dimitrov to come back from 5-2 to 5-5 in the second set.
Middle fingers
“Hey, you (don’t) whistle, I’m playing guys, but shut your mouths, ok!”, he addressed the spectators directly.
“I don’t play like that! I didn’t do anything to make them whistle at me”, persisted the world No.3, titled in 2020 in Paris… behind closed doors, in the middle of the Covid pandemic. 19.
The German Alexander Zverer after his victory against the French Ugo Humbert, at the Masters 1000 in Paris, November 1, 2023
AFP
The discussion ultimately earned him a warning for overtime but that did not prevent him from equalizing at one set all, on his seventh occasion.
In the third set, Dimitrov needed just as many match points to finish – one of them escaping him after a 47-shot exchange. Trailing 5 games to 2, Medvedev delayed the deadline until the decisive tie-break, in vain.
Obviously still pumped up, the former world No.1 left the court giving the public the finger.
“I was just looking at my nails,” Medvedev said with a smirk, when asked at a press conference.
“It’s the Bercy audience, everyone knows it, not everyone likes to play here. I played much better at Bercy when there was no one…, he remarked. Here , with me, it doesn’t connect.”
Djokovic spared himself this kind of strong emotion for his entry into the running: the world No.1 was clinical, as often, to dismiss the Argentinian Tomas Martin Etcheverry (31st) 6-3, 6-2 . In the round of 16, his opponent will be the Dutchman Tallon Griekspoor (23rd), a newcomer at this stage in Masters 1000.
Rugby, Ballon d’Or and tennis
Serbian Novak Djokovic after his victory against Argentinian Martin Etcheverry at the Masters 1000 in Paris, November 1, 2023
AFP
In the Parisian room, “Nole” makes her return to competition after a month and a half break after the 24th Grand Slam trophy won at the US Open in September, an absolute record equaled by the Australian Margaret Court. In the process, he made a victorious foray into the Davis Cup in Spain, in Valencia.
At the Stade de France for the World Cup final between Springboks and All Blacks on Saturday, his “first match” of rugby, on stage for the Ballon d’Or ceremony on Monday, and finally back on the court on Wednesday: “I “I did a lot of things, but I missed the competition, and now I’m focused” on the tournament, commented – in French – the 36-year-old Serbian.
“At the start of the match, I had a little trouble finding my rhythm, my tempo, but at the end of the second set, it was really good,” appreciated the outgoing finalist and already six-time winner at Bercy, a record.
Beaten from the start by Francisco Cerundolo (21st) 7-5, 6-4, Casper Ruud saw his last hopes of qualifying for the end-of-season Masters – of which he is the outgoing finalist – disappear.
Stefanos Tsitsipas (6th), Zverev’s future opponent in the round of 16, came even closer at the expense of Félix Auger-Aliassime (19th), beaten 6-3, 7-6 (7/4).
Ambushing in ninth position in the Race, the ranking established for the calendar year, Hubert Hurkacz, victorious over Roberto Bautista (66th) 6-3, 6-2, can still seriously believe in it. To a much lesser extent, before facing Sinner, Alex de Minaur (13th in the Race) too.
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