Daniil Medvedev faced a wild ride in his first-round match at the Australian Open, battling both his opponent and his emotions. He went up against Kasidit Samrej, ranked 418 in the world, in a thrilling five-set encounter.
During the match, Medvedev had a frustrating moment where he smashed his racket against a net camera after falling behind in the third set. This moment came as Samrej, playing in his first Grand Slam, was close to pulling off a stunning upset.
However, Samrej began to tire, allowing Medvedev to regain control and ultimately win the match with scores of 6-2, 4-6, 3-6, 6-1, 6-2. Medvedev, who has been to the finals in Melbourne three times, is no stranger to tough five-set matches. This was his fourth consecutive five-set match in this tournament, having previously lost a two-set lead in last year’s final.
After the match, Medvedev joked about his performance, saying, “I know that I play better when I play more tennis. So, why play just one hour and 30 minutes?” He’ll use these long matches to find his rhythm and feel more comfortable on the court.
Emotions ran high for Medvedev early in the match. He was already arguing with his coach by the second set, and things escalated when he felt frustrated in the third set. After some bad luck with a net cord, he took his frustrations out on the racket and the camera, which ended up damaged. A ball kid had to come and clean up the broken pieces!
As it seemed like Medvedev might exit early from this year’s tournament, Samrej struggled to maintain his intensity. Medvedev admitted, “In the second and third set, I couldn’t touch the ball. Full power, everything in, I didn’t know what to do.” He also expressed surprise at Samrej’s high level of play, saying that if Samrej could maintain this form, good things would come his way.
In other matches, fourth seed Taylor Fritz cruised to victory, losing only five games against fellow American Jenson Brooksby. Another notable match was between Gael Monfils and Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard, which turned into an exciting five-set thriller. Monfils came out on top after a tough battle, winning 7-6, 6-3, 6-7, 6-7, 6-4.
