Coco Gauff’s former coach, Brad Gilbert, shared his opinion on Daniil Medvedev’s racket-smash drama at the Monte-Carlo Masters. The Russian faced a humiliating loss in the opening round on Wednesday.
Medvedev returned to the clay court after 10 months at the Monte-Carlo Masters, where he squared off against Matteo Berrettini in his opening match. The Italian claimed the first set in just 25 minutes and ended the match in 50 minutes, registering a 6-0, 6-0 win over the World No. 10.
During the second set, Medvedev smashed his racket on the court six times, turning heads with his massive meltdown. Shortly after this, Gilbert sent a clear warning to the Russian on X, writing:
“Meddy is so lucky. That racket didn’t jump off the clay into the stands and rally hurt someone, once again players need to watch @andyroddick tutorial on how to throw a racket properly, maybe AR should repost or do another one.”
This loss was humiliating for Daniil Medvedev, as the World No. 10 lost to the World No. 90 without winning a single game. Just before this, he competed at the Miami Open, where he lost in the third round to Francisco Cerundolo.
Daniil Medvedev opens up about his heartbreaking loss at Monte-Carlo
After the loss against Matteo Berrettini, Daniil Medvedev made his feelings known about his performance on the court. He said his practice sessions on clay turn out to be good, but things change during the match. He said:
“It’s the same as every year: sure, my practice sessions on clay weren’t the best, but let’s just say I didn’t lose a single set in practice—6-0—so I don’t really understand what happened. I just couldn’t get a grip on anything: hitting the court, getting my serve in. In practice, I was serving well, so it’s unclear what happened. But there’s nothing I can do about it now.”
He added:
“It was hard to try anything because, basically, I could barely get more than two balls in a row into the court. You can play aggressively, you can play defensively, but if you can’t even get the ball in the court, it doesn’t matter how you play—it won’t help. I don’t see any reasons yet. I don’t even know if it’s worth looking for them or if it’s better to just forget about it and get ready for the next tournament. Obviously, you have to try to analyze something, but is it worth getting deep into the details… And why?”
Further highlighting the 6-0, 6-0 loss, he said:
“It’s one thing when you lose, say, 6-3, 6-3, and try to figure out what you could have done better. But when the score is like that, you could have done better in every single aspect. So I don’t know if there’s any point in breaking it down.”
Also read:
College Sports Network has you covered with the latest news, analysis, insights, and trending stories in tennis, college football, men’s college basketball, women’s college basketball, and college baseball!
