Daniil Medvedev has won multiple titles at the same ATP event for the first time in his career, following a walkover victory at the Dubai Tennis Championships.
Medvedev, who beat top seed Felix Auger-Aliassime in the semi-finals on Friday, was due to take on Tallon Griekspoor in the title match before the Dutchman was forced to pull out of the event on medical grounds. Griekspoor sustained an injury while playing Andrey Rublev and was seen limping during his press conference yesterday. It has since been confirmed he has suffered a hamstring tear.
Former world No.1 Medvedev has won 23 ATP titles during his career, with Dubai being his most prestigious on a hardcourt since the 2023 Miami Masters. He joins Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer as the only players to have won Dubai on multiple occasions. His first triumph was in 2023 when he defeated both Djokovic and Andrey Rublev en route to glory.
“I could see yesterday that maybe he (Griekspoor) had an injury. You never know how these injuries develop through the night.” Medvedev said during a recorded interview with the ATP.
“Sometimes they get easier and you can play, like with some soreness, and sometimes they get worse. I guess it got worse.
“I cannot do anything about it. I played a great tournament. Of course, I wanted to play the final, but it is what it is. I played at an unbelievable level yesterday.”
Medvedev is now scheduled to head to Indian Wells, but it is unclear when he and others at the event will be able to depart the country. Air traffic across the Middle East has been heavily affected by military strikes launched by America and Israel against Iran on Saturday. Iran has reacted by firing missiles at Israel, as well as other American army bases in the region, which also includes Dubai.
“Of course [I take] a lot of confidence. But tennis is a very fast-going sport, so one week you can play not the way you want and the other week you’re playing amazing. So I just hope to bring this confidence from the four matches I played into Indian Wells, for sure.” Medvedev commented.
“I played unreal the whole week, so I was actually really looking forward to the final and trying to play even better than I did. But it is what it is and I’m really happy with how the week turned out in general.”
Griekspoor is also unsure about when he will be able to leave the United Arab Emirates, but he will not be travelling to Indian Wells. He has confirmed to Dutch broadcaster NOS that he will be ‘sidelined for a few weeks.’
“I’m missing the Indian Wells Masters Tournament and possibly Miami.” He said.
Griekspoor reached the quarter-finals at Indian Wells last year but didn’t play in Miami due to a right ankle injury.
Medvedev’s route to the title
R1 – def Shang Juncheng (CHN) 6-1, 6-3
R2 – def Stan Wawrinka (SWI) 6-2, 6-3
QF – def Jenson Brooksby (USA) 6-2, 6-1
SF – def Felix Auger-Aliassime (CAN) 6-4, 6-2
F – def Griekspoor (NED) via walkover
