Daniil Medvedev on ankle sprain: “I thought I’m going to retire”

When Daniil Medvedev turned his right ankle midway through the second set of his fourth-round match with Alexander Zverev at the BNP Paribas Open on Tuesday, he thought that his hopes of finishing the match, let alone winning the title, were over.

“The moment I fell down I was like trying to stand up almost straightaway and the pain kicked in,” the Russian said. “Then even, what was it, the doctor came in first, and he said, let’s go to the chair. I was, like, I don’t know, I’m scared to go to the chair. Then I was like, Okay, I try. So I went.

“I thought I’m gonna retire. But I always like to give it a try. I had few times in my career where I thought I’m gonna retire, same, and I always give it a try. And if I cannot, that’s when I retire.”

Remarkably, Medvedev carried on and eventually beat Zverev 6-7 (5), 7-6 (5), 7-5 after three hours, 17 minutes to take his place in the quarter-finals.

Medvedev said he would not have continued if he thought he was making it worse and was reassured by the tournament physio and his own physio that he was OK to play on.

Medvedev hoping to be OK for quarter-finals

Medvedev is due to play Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the quarter-finals on Wednesday and the Russian admitted he was not sure if he’ll be OK or not. But he’s going to try.

“I don’t know yet, because the thing is that I twisted it, let’s say, pretty bad,” he said. “The moment I twisted it I thought it’s gonna be just fine and I’m gonna stand up and then the pain started raising, let’s say brutally. I actually thought it’s gonna be bad and I’m not gonna be able to continue. Then they taped it. In the beginning it was quite painful, so I was more concerned and focused on my ankle than the game.

“Then that actually helped me a little bit to play better. Then, for the rest of the match, adrenaline was probably kicking in. So it was not easy to walk, that’s why I was limping, but to move was easier.

“Now that I have cooled down, it’s big. I cannot walk properly. But if everything is going to be fine, I’m gonna tape it tomorrow, take one painkiller, and go to play. So not much more to add for the moment. Pretty painful, but nothing too bad hopefully.”

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