Medvedev scared everyone. Will the Olympics lose its main star from Russia?

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An unpleasant surprise was the news about the injury of the Russian tennis player Daniil Medvedev, because of which he withdrew from the time of the Masters quarterfinals in Madrid. Could this interfere with the Russian's performance at the Olympic Games in Paris?

The most unpleasant thing about Medvedev's injury is its suddenness, and therefore unpredictability. In the quarterfinals of the tournament in the capital of Spain, the Russian met with the Czech Jiri Lehechka. At some point, Daniil began to become noticeably cautious, and after the first game ended not in his favor, he approached his opponent and congratulated him on his victory. Medvedev could not continue the match.

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“I ran after the ball, tried to speed up and realized that my hip was not allowing me to do this, it seemed to be blocked – the feeling that occurs when you pull a muscle or have a spasm. I tried to understand what it was by talking to a doctor. I asked him if I could make it worse. He answered – if it is a tear, then yes, if it is a spasm, then no. I tried to continue the game, accelerated, but again felt pain. “I realized that there was no point in continuing,” this is how Medvedev explained what happened.

The tennis player, of course, was asked by journalists how serious the damage could be, to which he just shrugged his shoulders. “I can’t say anything more, let’s wait for tomorrow or the day after tomorrow, we need to do an MRI. Maybe it’s an injury for five days, maybe for two weeks. I don’t know yet whether it’s very serious, just serious or not serious.” , he stated.

But there is also the possibility of a more unpleasant scenario. The fact that the player’s side is still silent may also indicate that the injury was not the simplest. And revealing your cards means sharing unnecessary information with your opponents. The French Open is ahead – the main spring tournament of the tennis season, and Medvedev is one of its favorites. Of course, if the Russian withdraws from the tournament in Rome, it will be clear that not everything is all right with him, but in any case, the general public does not need to know what is wrong with his leg. As they say, this is a leg – who needs a leg.

Stories of tennis players not disclosing the nature of their injuries in order not to give their opponents extra trump cards are quite common. I remember, for example, the case of Olympic champion Elena Dementieva, who at the 2010 French Open played almost the entire tournament with a torn calf muscle. “Almost all” means from the second round to the quarterfinals. Four matches. Only when it became completely unbearable, the Russian woman withdrew and admitted that she deliberately did not inform the press about the details of the injury, so as not to help her opponents in this way.

Well, if we assume that Medvedev will need time to heal his hip injury, then his prospects for the coming tournaments are extremely uncertain. If it turns out that the “very serious” option is correct, then we can talk about several months. And then the performance not only at Roland Garros, but also at the Olympic Games in Paris at the end of July, where Daniil, according to him, really wanted to play, could be in jeopardy.

And such a development of events, of course, will be a serious blow for Medvedev. Three years ago in Tokyo he had an excellent chance of winning. But in the quarterfinals, the Russian came across Spaniard Pablo Carreno Busta, who played the match of his life. Everyone who spoke with Daniil in the mixed zone after that defeat remembers how disappointed he was at that moment. Probably, already then Medvedev set himself the goal of returning to the Games in three years. And our tennis player does not want to give up his dream, even despite all the events that are happening in the Olympic movement.

But while there is no information about the nature of Medvedev’s injury, let’s hope for the best. And let's not forget about other Russian contenders for success in Paris 2024. Andrei Rublev, who already has the title of Olympic champion (only in mixed doubles), who won the Masters in Madrid last week, has no less chance of winning. By the way, I am also experiencing health problems. According to the tennis player, his throat was so sore that he could only eat baby food.

Also, as of now, Tokyo Olympic silver medalist Karen Khachanov is in the main draw of this year's Olympic Games and Roman Safiullin. For women, these are Daria Kasatkina, Lyudmila Samsonova, Ekaterina Alexandrova and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova. However, Veronika Kudermetova and Anna Kalinskaya are also very close behind in the rankings, so the fight for a place in the coveted four will continue until the decisive moment, which, as we know, will come after the end of the French Open. It is then, according to the rating, that the composition of the Olympic participants will be determined. But no matter how the card turns out, it is already clear that each of the Russians could turn out to be a joker.