Andrey Rublev won the start of the ATP Finals against his Russian compatriot Daniil Medvedev – and made a political statement.
Rublev won against Medvedev in a hard-fought match at the tournament in Turin 6:7, 6:4 and 7:6. In the second match of the group, Stefanos Tsitsipas (Greece) and Novako Djokovic (Serbia) meet in the evening.
Rublev calls for “peace”
Rublev used the stage for punctuation. In tennis, players often sign a disc that is on the camera. Rublev wrote: “Peace, peace, peace – that’s all we need.” His home country has been waging a war of aggression against Ukraine since February. At a match in Dubai back then, he sent a similar message, “No War Please.”
The treatment of athletes from Russia and Belarus is different in tennis. Wimbledon excluded all participants from both countries in 2022. Activists from Russia and Belarus are individually admitted to the men’s ATP tour and the women’s WTA tour.
ATP Finals with the best eight of the season
The eight best tennis professionals of the current season will compete at the ATP Finals in Turin. Rafael Nadal (Spain), Casper Ruud (Norway), Stefanos Tsitsipas (Greece), Novak Djokovic (Serbia), Daniil Medvedev (Russia), Felix Auger-Aliassime (Canada), Andrey Rublev (Russia) and TaylorFritz (USA) are in.
The world number one Carlos Alcaráz (Spain) had to pull out at short notice due to a torn abdominal muscle. Germany’s best player, twice finals-Winner (2021, 2018) and defending champion Alexander Zverev, is not qualified.