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After the match against Bellucci, Medevedev was posed with questions regarding a potential retirement from the game: questions he shut down quickly.
Daniil Medvedev in action (X)
Daniil Medvedev shot down all rumours of a possible retirement, stating that he believes in himself to find his form again, after his loss against Italian qualifier Mattia Bellucci at the ATP Rotterdam event on Wednesday.
Bellucci earned his first Top 10 win on Wednesday at the ABN AMRO Open in Rotterdam, where he upset 2023 champion Medvedev 6-3, 6-7(6), 6-3 in a second-round thriller.
The 23-year-old lefty played lights out for the majority of the two-hour, 55-minute clash in the Ahoy Arena, while he showed mental resilience after recovering from squandering a match point in the second-set tie-break to eventually reach his second tour-level quarter-final.
Bellucci unleashed a series of breathtaking angles that left Medvedev scrambling, while he fearlessly took the match to the third seed.
The Italian repeatedly powered the ball through Medvedev’s defences from close range, leaving the World No. 7 on the back foot at times.
After the match, Medevedev was posed with questions regarding a potential retirement from the game: questions he shut down quickly.
“I don’t think that’s gonna happen soon. I like tennis, I’m still winning a lot of money, so I’m gonna continue playing until I can do it. Then, if I drop out of top 100, then I don’t know… but this is probably not gonna happen,” replied Medvedev.
“I’m pretty sure I can come back strong enough. The question is, when? Tomorrow? Next month? In 12 months? This, I don’t know”
Bellucci is up 16 places to No. 76 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings after sealing victory on his second match point, 57 minutes after his first. The Italian, who also reached the last eight in Atlanta in July 2024, will next play sixth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas or Dutchman Tallon Griekspoor.
“I really tried to enjoy every minute of it,” Bellucci said after the match.
“I tried to have fun on court and be myself as much as possible. I hit the serve and volley a bit and hit the underarm serve. I wanted to be myself and I saw him far back. I really think it is something I used to move him a little bit from there. I don’t want to be disrespectful.
“I felt that I had to enjoy every moment of this match. This is a big result so I will enjoy it.”
