Daniil Medvedev slams Alexander Zverev over ‘unfair’ comment: ‘Look at yourself in the mirror’

Alexander Zverev’s claims that Daniil Medvedev was “one of the most unfair players in the world” have not gone down well with the former world No 1, who says the German “is living in his own world”.

Medvedev and Zverev squared off in the third round of the Monte Carlo Masters on Thursday and it was a heated affair that lasted more than three hours with the Russian saving two match points en route to a 3-6, 7-5, 7-6 (9-7) victory.

However, there was some drama as Medvedev was booed by spectators shortly after he won the second set while he also took a toilet break midway during the deciding set, but he was back on court before the umpire called time.

The post-match handshake was pretty frosty and after the match Zverev claimed he was “extremely disappointed” by Medvedev’s “unfair” and told Sky Sports Germany: “I take fair play and sportsmanship very serious. He does not.”

Medvedev exited the tournament on Friday as he lost in two sets against Holger Rune, but he did not hold back in his criticism of Zverev during the post-match press conference.

“First, I do think that honestly with probably 90 players on tour I’m great friends,” he said. “With maybe 50 it’s not like best friends but really great relationship.

“So I usually feel bad when something on court happens and let’s say I’m not fair play, because I know sometimes I’m not.

“Yesterday what the thing with the stick made him say this? Toilet [break], well I wanted to pee. And let’s take it step by step. So 2-2. No, 3-2 I have like five break points or whatever. He manages to hold. Congrats.

“Then I make the game 40-love for me. I go to the toilet, I lose next two games, he’s serving for the match, and he’s saying I’m going to the toilet to make him play worse.”

The 2021 US Open champion insists that he doesn’t have a problem apologising if he was unfair, but Zverev needs to “look at himself in the mirror”.

“Sascha is living in his own world,” he said. “I already had like five players in the locker room coming to me and saying ‘come on, Daniil, why are you so unfair (smiling)?'”

“Sascha when he loses we can find maybe 25 interviews of him where he does say some strange things.

“Again, honestly saying like if guys like Casper [Ruud], I don’t know, Andrey [Rublev], maybe Karen [Khachanov], even Diego [Schwartzman].

“I had let’s call it a fight with him [Schwartzman] at the ATP Cup [in 2020]. Honestly, I’m at fault and probably he still doesn’t like me the way maybe he liked me before this match. I’m sorry that a guy like Diego, who’s so kind and so fair play, feels like this about me.

“Sascha is not this guy. Sascha is not like Casper, he’s not like Diego, he’s not like Andrey. When he says someone is not fair play, you’re like, okay, great. Look at yourself in the mirror.”