Daniil Medvedev questioned why cameras were on court if they couldn’t provide successful replays (Image: Getty)
launched a rant about the cameras on the court after being slapped with a fine for one of his outbursts.
During his post-match press conference in Dubai, the world No. 6 encouraged his agent to ask a question, giving him the chance to speak his mind.
After racking up a huge bill for damaging a camera at the recent , Medvedev wasn’t impressed that the technology wouldn’t work properly during a video review in Dubai.
A former champion at the Dubai Championships, Medvedev booked his spot in the quarter-final when he beat 6’8” big server Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard on Wednesday.
The top seed had chances to break at 3-3 in the second set and called for a video review during the crucial game, believing Mpetshi Perricard had touched the net.
There was a long delay while the umpire waited for a replay to be shown. After watching the footage, the official concluded that there wasn’t enough evidence to see whether Mpetshi Perricard had touched the net, and the point was not replayed.
Medvedev went on to win 6-4 6-4 and took the opportunity to address his issues with the cameras on court. The former No. 1 had another issue at the , when he
He inadvertently broke a camera inside the net and later joked that it would likely be cheap to replace a GoPro. But after his victory over Mpetshi Perricard, the Russian revealed that he received a large fine.
Daniil Medvedev requested a video review but the umpire said there was insufficient evidence (Image: Tennis TV)
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After answering another question about his coach during his press conference, Medvedev said his agent, Olivier van Lindonk, had a query of his own. “I think Olivier has a question,” he said.
“What happened today? On the court?” Medvedev’s agent asked, allowing the 29-year-old to air his grievances with the on-court cameras.
“I have one thing to say. In , I got fined like for 60,000 for the camera, because it was actually not a Go Pro, which I didn’t know. I got fined 60,000, which was a big amount. Well, I can understand. The rules are rules,” he started.
“But today [what] happened [is] that I don’t think he touched, but we have the video review. If he touched, I win the point, I win the break, huge. I am like, ‘Okay, show it’.”
When the video review proved unsuccessful, Medvedev questioned why expensive cameras were installed on the court if they couldn’t be used properly for VAR.
He continued: “Then there is this camera for $60,000 that doesn’t show it. I am like, ‘What is it doing there?’
“And basically when I broke it in , in my opinion, it shouldn’t even be there. It’s a net. Don’t put the camera there in the net.
“Now I’m asking the question to everyone: What is a 60K camera doing there if he cannot even show if he touched the net or not?”
After getting his grievances off of his chest, Medvedev thanked his agent for asking about it. “Thank you. Thanks for the question,” he smiled.
Medvedev will now take on Tallon Griekspoor for a spot in the semi-final. The Russian has never won the same tournament more than once and, as a former champion in Dubai, he will be hoping to break that unusual streak this week.