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Daniil Medvedev walks off court without his bag following loss to Alexei Popyrin in Toronto.
Former world No. 1 Daniil Medvedev came up short at the National Bank Open late Thursday night, falling to reigning champion Alexei Popyrin in a three-set affair that finished well past midnight in Toronto.
Medvedev, who won the tournament in 2021, shook hands with his opponent before then immediately exiting the court, leaving behind his racquets, as well as his bag.
Needless to say, commentators and fans in attendance were left collectively scratching their heads.
Throughout the match, Medvedev struggled with his serve, while on the flip side Popyrin appeared to find the mark when he needed it most, posting a first serve percentage of 61% to Medvedev’s 53%.
Popyrin will now collide with No. 5 seed Holger Rune in the Round of 16 on Saturday as he looks to become the first player to go back-to-back in Toronto since Rafael Nadal, who accomplished the feat in 2018 and 2019 to win his fourth and fifth titles in Toronto.
As he looks to continue his quest for a second National Bank Open title, Popyrin now finds himself at a career high of No. 21 in the world, while Daniil Medvedev remains at No. 14 on the ATP Live Rankings.
Alexei Popyrin Talks Win Over Daniil Medvedev
Following his win over Daniil Medvedev on Thursday night, reigning National Bank Open Alexei Popyrin spoke to those still in attendance on center court, reflecting on the win, and his pursuit of a second title in Toronto.
“I felt like I should have won that first set. I was in the driver’s seat, I felt like I was really comfortable out there and then something happened, the same thing that happened earlier this year when I played him, I kinda let go and I started feeling my shots a little bit, and when that happens you play a faster pace against him he starts feeling the ball a little bit more and starts getting it in.
“So I had to revert to the main tactics that we had, which was more focused on serving and coming to the net and not giving him the same rhythm and I think that worked.”
Previewing Alexei Popyrin’s Upcoming Match with Holger Rune
With his win over Daniil Medvedev on Thursday night, Alexei Popyrin now books a Round of 16 meeting with Holger Rune, who picked up a dominant straight-set win over Alexandre Muller earlier in the day.
Rune and Popyrin have played just once throughout their careers, back in 2023 at the ATP Masters 1000 in Rome, where Rune picked up a big win in the Round of 16 en route to the finals, where he lost in straight sets to Daniil Medvedev.
Rune now heads into Saturday’s match amid an impressive run that’s seen him go back-to-back matches without dropping a set.
On the flip side, for Popyrin, his ongoing run in Toronto comes on the heels of back-to-back first round exits at Wimbledon, and the Mubadala Citi DC Open.
With the reigning champ looking to catapult himself up the ATP rankings by going going back-to-back, and Rune looking to win his second title of the year, it’ll be interesting to see how things play out.
Evan Bell Evan Bell is a sports journalist covering MMA for Heavy.com. He has been covering the UFC since 2011, with bylines dating back to before the UFC implemented its own rankings in 2013. More about Evan Bell
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