Daniil Medvedev beat Hubert Hurkacz and finished the match in style to book his spot in the semi-finals of the Australian Open with a 7-6(4), 2-6, 6-3, 5-7, 6-4 victory. 

But some drama unfolded at the Rod Laver Arena during the match. Both players were in a fierce battle as they fought for dominion. Medvedev won the first set, but Hurkacz returned to win the second set. Both sat down to recuperate after a hard-fought set. The time allotted to each player when they want to use the facilities is 5 minutes.

However, Medvedev pushed the time limit and took more than 7 minutes to return to the court. Many players stall matches to control the tempo of the game. Medvedev could’ve possibly delayed his break to employ the strategy. This came in handy for him as he led the third set, along with a previous change in the first set.

A few days before his Hurkacz bout, the 2021 US Open champion told Jim Courier that he likes to take big serves far behind the baseline. But right off the bat, he took Hurkacz’s serve on the baseline. Hurkacz has one of the biggest serves in the tournament, and many players find it difficult to give a proper return. The Russian star chose to take it up close to likely use the counter and volley strategy. This extra time seemed to have annoyed fans as they hounded him on ‘X’.

Fans call out Daniil Medvedev for a long break during the match

One fan went on to call Medvedev a ‘dork’, he wrote, “Medvedev is such a dork he always takes 15 minutes after he losses a set and stales on purpose.”

Another viewer laughed at the fact that stayed in the locker room. They wrote, “Medvedev just running off to the locker room for 7 mins after dropping a set lol.”

One user agreed with the comments of Coco Gauff’s coach, Brad Gilbert. He said that the time limit of 5 minutes between sets is pointless if players will not be penalized when they breach it.

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They wrote, “Agree with Brad Gilbert. Why have a rule that limits players to 5 minutes between sets but not penalize them when they go over? It’s not like that was set 4. Medvedev pushed it out to 7 minutes. Should’ve been a point penalty? #AO2024.” They further said that Medvedev should be given a point penalty for going over the time limit.

While they felt incredulous, one fan said that Medvedev would’ve obviously been scot-free after going beyond the time limit. He wrote, “Everyone pray daniil medvedev returns from the back of the court 🧍🏿‍♂️.”

Another user commented on how Medvedev was getting away with the break, they wrote, “Ofc Medvedev gets away with penalization for the long ass break after 2nd set😪😪😪In my opinion.”

Though Medvedev’s took a few extra minutes, it worked out well for him as he broke the Polish player right away. What do you think of this move? Let us know in the comments. 

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