Former world No 1 Daniil Medvedev reveals he has an issue with the type of balls used on hard courts since the start of the 2023 season. On Saturday, Medvedev defeated Andy Murray 6-4 6-4 in the Doha final for his second title this year.
In his post-final press conference, Medvedev seemingly urged reporters to ask other players about their opinion on the type of balls used on hard courts in 2023. Also, Medvedev suggested he would say more only if more players came forward and complained about the balls.
“I can say this now that the tournament is over. I don’t think these balls are good for hard courts. They changed something this year. I heard players are struggling with shoulders, elbows, & wrists. I talked a little bit to the supervisor, but the thing is that I wonder what other players think.
You’re not going to be in the locker, you know, coming to every other player asking about the balls. I had wrist problems in Australia. So maybe if people going to start asking them, maybe finally I’m going to be the only one arguing about the balls, and then I’m just, that’s my problem.
If there is going to be 15 players that come out and say, Yeah, I feel the same, then it’s a problem of the balls,” Medvedev said, per FirstSportz.
Medvedev didn’t do well in Australia, bounced back in February
After a semifinal appearance in Adelaide, Medvedev suffered a shock Australian Open third-round defeat against Sebastian Korda.
Following his Australian Open exit, Medvedev revealed that he was bothered by a wrist issue. After taking some time to recover and rest, Medvedev returned to action two weeks ago in Rotterdam, where he made it all the way.
Then, Medvedev also went all the way in Doha to clinch back-to-back titles in February. Now, Medvedev is set to compete at an ATP 500 event in Dubai. In the Dubai first round, Medvedev will be taking on Matteo Arnaldi.
