Daniil Medvedev makes morbid prediction as temperatures soar at US Open
Men’s world No3 Daniil Medvedev has claimed that “a player is going to die” in sweltering conditions at the US Open.
The Russian delivered his warning straight down the television camera during his quarter-final win over compatriot Andrey Rublev on Wednesday in New York.
Temperatures of 33C at Flushing Meadows have been exacerbated by high humidity, prompting a sweaty Medvedev to issue his morbid prediction.
“One player is going to die, and then you’re going to see,” he said during the third set of his 6-4 6-3 6-4 win over Rublev.
Medvedev, 27, also called the conditions “brutal” and said that he had struggled with his vision towards the end of the match.
US Open chiefs initiated their extreme heat policy yesterday, when a spectator collapsed in the stands during Madison Keys’ win over Marketa Vondrousova.
But the measures only allow men’s players an extra 10-minute break after the third set, by which time Medvedev had booked his place in the last four.
There could be more pain for male players tomorrow, with one of the semi-finals scheduled to be played at 3pm in the mid-afternoon heat.
“This and the Tokyo Olympic Games [were the worst conditions ever], it was brutal,” 2021 US Open champion Medvedev said after the match.
“The only good thing I see in these conditions is that both suffer. It’s tough for both of us.
“There were ups and downs but that’s so normal. At the end of the third set I kind of couldn’t see the ball anymore. I kind of played with sensations.”
It is not Medvedev’s first outburst at the US Open. On his way to reaching the final in 2019 he was fined £7,400 for sticking up his middle finger to a hostile crowd.
He then told spectators: “I want all of you to know, when you sleep tonight, I won because of you. The energy you gave. The more you do this, the more I win.”
He then celebrated his 2021 win by performing a “dead fish” celebration.