Medvedev coasted to a 6-1, 6-4, 7-6(3) win in his first-round match against Henri Laaksonen at the Rod Laver Arena on Tuesday. During his post-match press conference, the Russian was asked how Djokovic’s absence could impact the draw and his own preparations.
The World No. 2 began by praising the Serb for the sheer number of matches he has won at Melbourne Park.
Medvedev then stressed that he did not want to be distracted by the World No. 1’s absence from the draw.
Medvedev pointed to his triumph at the 2021 US Open to explain how he had to beat six tough opponents en route to the final, where he downed Djokovic. He asserted that it will be the same at the 2022 Australian Open as well, or any Grand Slam for that matter.
The 25-year-old also stressed that he looks forward to meeting the 20-time Grand Slam champion once more at the Australian Open. He reminisced about their meeting in 2021 and how tough it was to play against Djokovic, who is a record nine-time champion in Melbourne.
“It’s definitely not going to be easy against Nick Kyrgios since he likes to play big names” - Daniil Medvedev
Daniil Medvedev will take on mercurial Australian Nick Kyrgios in the second round on Thursday. The Russian said he was relishing the challenge of playing Kyrgios in front of a vocal Melbourne crowd.
The World No. 2 then went on to praise Kyrgios’ showmanship, pointing out that even people who hated the Australian’s personality were always entertained when they watched him play.
Kyrgios, who reached the second round with a near-flawless 6-4, 6-4, 6-3 victory against Liam Broady, leads the head-to-head against the Russian 2-0.
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