London, July 6: Daniil Medvedev's Wimbledon dream turned into a nightmare on Wednesday (July 5), as he was caught up in a bizarre row with officials which culminated in him pelting the umpire's chair with coins.
The 21-year-old dominated the headlines when he knocked out fifth-seed Stan Wawrinka in the first round.
Few gave Medvedev a hope against the experienced Wawrinka, but the youngster held his nerve to prevail 6-4, 3-6, 6-4, 6-1. However, his Wimbledon fairy-tale soured as he was caught up in a bizarre row during his second round match against Belgium's Ruben Bemelmans.
The match went to the fifth set, with Medvedev moving into a 2-0 lead. However, a series of controversial decisions saw the Russian lose his head, with Bemelmans taking control. An irate Medvedev asked the court supervisor for the umpire to be removed, only for his request to be declined. Bemelmans won the match 6-4, 6-2, 3-6, 2-6, 6-3.
After the match, Medvedev took out his wallet and started throwing coins at the bottom of the umpire's chair, before storming off. Asked whether he was trying to insinuate that the umpire was bribed, Medvedev said: "I haven't thought about it and that's not the why I did it."
"I was disappointed with the result of the match. It was frustrating after a big win I had. All the match was not going well for me, so I was just very disappointed. In the heat of the moment, I did a bad thing. I apologise for this," he added. "It was just that I was packing my things and I saw my wallet."
OneIndia News
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