“You can’t be serious, man. You cannot be serious. That ball was on the line.” Remember the now-iconic line made immortal by 7-time slam champion John McEnroe 44 years ago? It was the exact moment when “Shock blew up” at the Centre Court as McEnroe, then 20, showed his furious side to the world, ironically during the Gentlemen’s event on grass in 1981. Tennis, since then, has witnessed many instances of on-court aggression to the point where McEnroe’s incident pales in comparison. Sometimes you see Andrey Rublev expressing frustration on himself through his racket when things go sideways, or former WTA icon Serena Williams arguing with the chair umpire in the 2018 US Open final. But nothing comes close to Russian ATP pro Daniil Medvedev’s repetitive on-court antics. This year’s US Open was no exception when it comes to fans witnessing his furious side. However, it seems there is more than what meets the eye regarding the former slam winner.

Last month during the US Open first round, Medvedev’s match against Frenchman Benjamin Bonzi made the headlines – but for all the wrong reasons. To everyone’s surprise, Bonzi ended up winning this clash in a cliffhanger five-set battle. Before the result, however, the tussle between him and Medvedev drew all the attention. After Bonzi failed to land his first serve in the third set, the chair umpire gave him a golden chance to replay the first serve instead of going for a second serve. Reason? A stray photographer had mistakenly wandered onto the court, affecting the play. But Medvedev was left angered by this verdict. After all, he was already trailing after losing the first two sets.

“Are you a man? Are you a man? Why are you shaking?” he yelled at the chair umpire. Not only that, he then started to get the crowd on his side by pumping them up. It was no less than a riot with fans chanting ‘second serve’ for Bonzi. After nearly a month of this infamous incident, Medvedev’s psychoanalyst Francisca Dauzet has now revealed her perspective on the 29-year-old’s aggression. However, she thinks people need to see the other side as well.

That is, a player’s moments of anger shouldn’t be scrutinized without considering the emotions at play. “I can say that I am surprised and not at the same time. Because he is not the first and only one to do this kind of thing. Tennis is a sport that provokes this kind of overreaction. Daniil is a bit used to certain mood swings and yes they can be caustic and unwelcome sometimes.” reported Tennis Majors in an interview with Dauzet. Drawing a parallel between Medvedev and McEnroe, she then continued, “His behavior annoys and also affects the public. We remember John McEnroe, for example, in his time who inspired similar feelings…”

On June 22, 1981, McEnroe was playing the first round match against compatriot Tom Gullikson at Wimbledon. After he hit a serve, the chair umpire termed it out. However, McEnroe was confident that the ball was in. When things got a bit heated-up, the young ATP star of that era lost his cool. “You guys are the absolute pits of the world.”

Coming back to Medvedev, his psychoanalyst stressed the fact that social media plays a bigger role these days. Especially when it comes to escalating sentiments toward a player’s reaction. It can be in a positive or negative way. “In the 1980s, there were no social networks and we were not in the ‘society of the spectacle’ pushed to the extreme that we know today. Today, the public is offended by what they see, and at the same time they love it. It makes them vibrate, it amuses them and at the same time, it causes scandal. It feeds the flow of comments.”

To put it shortly, she believes Medvedev’s reaction was justified. “It is normal that, during a very long match, emotions of all kinds are expressed and sometimes in an exacerbated way.” But guess what? The Russian had to pay a heavy price for showing up his ‘exacerbated‘ side.

Daniil Medvedev’s US Open behavior results in massive fine

For many, Daniil Medvedev’s US Open outburst reignited the memories of a similar incident featuring him. And you don’t need to go a long way back. Earlier this year during the Australian Open’s second round against Thailand’s Kasidit Samrej, the Russian let his racket do the talking. Only that it did a bit too much – and through the net. So much so, that a tiny camera had to take the final blow.

After Medvedev snatched the first set, Samrej stunned him and won the next two. In third set, however, the World No.18 lost his cool after an unfortunate net cord went against him. The next thing the crowd witnessed at the Rod Laver Arena was Medvedev repeatedly smashing his racket against the net. In doing so, he ended up breaking an expensive camera attached to the net. Result? He paid a whopping fine amounting to $76,000.

Following his US Open antics in the match against Boniz, he was sure of a similar fate. “I‘m getting a big enough fine so if I speak, I’m in big trouble so I’m not gonna speak,” the ATP pro foreshadowed. Eventually, he had to pay a total of $42,500 in fine. While $30,000 was for his unsportsmanlike conduct toward the umpire, the remaining $12,500 was for racket abuse.

What’s your take on the common occurrences of Medvedev’s anger on the court? Is it okay for him to keep doing it when the results go against him? Let us know in the comments below.