Daniil Medvedev gave a tongue in cheek thanks to chair umpire Carlos Bernardes after the Russian player lifted the Italian Open title on Sunday.
Although Medvedev eventually cruised to a two sets victory against Holger Rune in the final in Rome, he was made to wait for a brief moment to celebrate due to a marginal call from the match umpires on match point. During the deciding point, Rune hit a deep shot over the baseline that was initially missed by the umpires until Bernardes intervened and called the shot officially as out.
Medvedev had failed to win a single match at the Foro Italico before his 2023 title and it was also his first-ever clay court ATP title. There was a lot then riding on Bernardes' decisive call on match point and Medvedev jokingly paid thanks to the umpire for making the right decision during his post-match speech.
"I have to says thanks to Carlos. I don’t see him. Because I actually thought the last ball was in, and it was out by far. He saw it first. So, thank you, Carlos! I don’t see him but yeah, thanks a lot. Otherwise, I would continue the point and that would be."
It was undoubtedly one of Medvedev's career highs so far, although he may have preferred to win in smoother circumstances. In addition, the Italian Open victory added to a string of impressive performances from the 27-year-old so far in 2023.
Medvedev has now won five ATP events this season. He also went all the way at the Miami Open, the Dubai Tennis Championships, the Qatar Open and the Rotterdam Open.
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