Daniil Medvedev was stopped from playing this year’s Laver Cup because of the British government, that’s according to the the Russian’s countryman Andrey Rublev in a new accusation. The world No 4 looked like a frontrunner to represent Team Europe this year but wasn’t picked for the squad, and it has now been claimed that the government stepped in with the Laver Cup being staged in London this year.
Medvedev made his Laver Cup debut last year and looked like an obvious choice to return to the team in 2022 after reaching world No 1 earlier in the season. But the 26-year-old was never announced for the Team Europe lineup despite his success over the last year, and Rublev has now claimed that the British government were behind Medvedev’s absence.
Russians were banned from competing at Wimbledon this summer after the All England Club revealed that government guidelines effectively left them with the options of banning them, or allowing those who signed a declaration condemning Putin and the war in Ukraine to compete. And it appears this protocol extended to the Laver Cup with the three-day team event being staged in London’s O2 Arena this year.
Asked whether he was approached to represent Europe for the fifth edition of the Laver Cup which saw Roger Federer play his final match before retiring, Rublev said: “Not me. I know that Daniil Medvedev [was].” And the world No 9 revealed that any hope of Medvedev playing was blocked by the government.
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“With my team, we did a lot of work. Physically and mentally, I hope to be 100% until the end of the year.” The preparations didn’t quite pay off for Medvedev at the US Open though, as he was knocked out by Nick Kyrgios in the fourth round and failed to defend his title from 2021, losing his world No 1 ranking as a result.
The world No 7 has played just two tournaments since, losing in the first round of the Moselle Open to former world No 3 Stan Wawrinka. But things seem to be looking up for Medvedev, who is through to the quarter-final of this week’s Astana Open and looks to be back to his best, dropping just nine games across his first two rounds.
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