What’s tennis without a few bursts of fiery energy, right? Racket smashes always steal the show and stir up fans in the stands and online. Even the best players have had their moments (Well, except Rafael Nadal.) Though even he’s lost his temper a few times. Among today’s players, Daniil Medvedev stands out, and his fines list proves it. But would he ever change that?

The Russian is back at the Shanghai Masters, eyeing another Masters 1000 title after an early exit at the China Open semis. Ahead of his opener against Dalibor Svrcina, Medvedev was asked to reflect on his first major controversy in 2016. Back then, at the Savannah Challenger, he was disqualified for accusing the umpire of favoritism toward his opponent. He admitted he wasn’t entirely at fault and had apologized at the time. Then came an interesting question: if he could rewrite a headline, which one would he choose?

The options were: “Medvedev is testing a new return technique, from the fifth row of the stands. Opponents are shocked.” Medvedev laughed that off, saying he wasn’t doing that anyway. Another read, “20-year-old Medvedev becomes FIFA world champion,” to which he joked, “could’ve in ‘14.” But the third one hit home: “A day without fines is already a win: Young tennis player Daniil Medvedev learns to control his emotions.”

“No, that one is perfect, absolutely perfect. I’m scared to think how many fines I’ve paid throughout my career,” Medvedev said. Then he explained, “I just…well…because this perfectly proves that, in a way, you’re not playing for money. Because if I were only playing for money, I’d never do anything wild on the court. But it’s emotions, it’s life, it’s sport. If they showed me all my fines accumulated throughout my career, I’d probably cry.” And that remains true today.

He made quite an exit at the US Open last month. Medvedev erupted in anger during his first-round match against Benjamin Bonzi after a photographer stepped onto the court on match point. The umpire awarded Bonzi a first serve, and Medvedev stormed toward the chair, shouting, “Are you a man? Why are you shaking?” and “He wants to go home, he doesn’t like it. He gets paid by the match, not by the hour.” The crowd booed as chaos delayed play for more than six minutes. Bonzi eventually regrouped and won in five sets. After the match, Medvedev smashed his racket again and was fined $42,500 for unsportsmanlike conduct and racket abuse.

It wasn’t his biggest fine, but it was his second of the year. Earlier at the Australian Open, he was fined $76,000 for breaking a net camera and smashing rackets during the first two rounds. That included a $10,000 fine for camera damage and $66,000 for code violations after a point penalty. That brings him to roughly $118,500 in fines in 2025 alone.

Now he says, “It’d be nice to live without fines. But I’m an emotional person on the court. I can’t help it.” Still, he’s trying to keep his cool these days. Although he narrowly avoided another fine during his tense run at the China Open!

Daniil Medvedev dodges another fine in Beijing

During his semifinal clash against young American Learner Tien, he began struggling with severe cramps late in the match and was forced to withdraw midway. But just before that moment, controversy struck when the umpire handed Medvedev a “best effort” code violation, claiming he wasn’t trying on Tien’s serve.

The call stunned everyone watching. The chair thought Medvedev had simply given up on the point, but in truth, he could barely move because of the cramps. The moment quickly went viral, and fans couldn’t believe what they were seeing. The ATP later stepped in, reviewed the footage, and confirmed the umpire had made a mistake.

A formal statement soon followed: “Upon reviewing the incident, the ATP Officiating has determined that the ‘Best Efforts’ code violation was issued in error. This was communicated to Medvedev + his team following the match, and no fine will be imposed.” That brought relief to Medvedev, who had initially faced the risk of a $40,000 fine for the violation. The governing body clarified that the penalty had been completely voided after their review.

Still, Medvedev hadn’t let the moment go quietly. Furious on court, he confronted the umpire directly, but calmly said, “So, you prefer that I retire? Say to the cameras that you prefer that the guys are retiring. I’m giving my best effort, so why the hell is he giving me best effort? Who are you to decide for me? Who are you? What’s your name? I want to do something bad. I’m not allowed because I’m disqualified. Why is every referee in the world trying to intimidate me? I didn’t say one word. After US Open, I’m trying to be good and this guy is doing that? And I’m supposed to act good?”

Now, although cramps ended his semifinal hopes, the Russian clearly left everything on the court. Now all eyes turn to the Shanghai Masters, where Daniil Medvedev is set to face Czech qualifier Dalibor Svrcina tomorrow, Saturday, October 4. The last time he lifted the trophy here was in 2019, defeating Alexander Zverev 6-4, 6-1 in the final. Can he repeat history and grab his second Shanghai title? Drop your thoughts in the comments below!