ATP Rotterdam: after Zverev also Medvedev out
Top favorite Daniil Medvedev was eliminated in round one of the ATP Tour 500 tournament in Rotterdam. With the defeat against Dusan Lajovic, the Russian missed the jump to second place in the ATP world rankings for the time being.
by tennisnet.com
last edit: Mar 03, 2021, 02:39 pm
Medvedev should have reached the final in Rotterdam to replace Rafael Nadal as the current number two in the ATP world rankings. Medvedev was a bit away from that against Lajovic. The Serb won 7: 6 (4) and 6: 4 and meets Borna Coric in round two. Medvedev even earned a penalty point in the end after smashing his racket on the ultimately decisive break. Lajovic started the last game with a score of 5: 4 in the second set with a free 15: 0 - and did not give up any more points.
After the match, Lajovic emphasized that he had felt the uncertainty at Medvedev, especially towards the end of the second round. The general circumstances are difficult in Rotterdam: He feels very cramped in the hall without the fans.
Before that, Alexander Zverev had already retired. The German number one could not take advantage of a break twice against Alexander Bublik, losing 5: 7 and 3: 6. Jan-Lennard Struff had no chance against David Goffin: Struff lost 4: 6 and 0: 6.