Medvedev says he’s over the hump after hip injury

Daniil Medvedev said on Thursday he’s back on form after a Madrid hip injury scare and will proceed as planned with his title defence at the Rome Masters.

The second seed behind Novak Djokovic at the Foro Italico, gave a reassuring analysis of his recent scare which forced him to quit a quarter-final last month in Madrid in hopes of keeping any damage to a minimum.

“I’m feeling good now, I had a minor injury,” he said. “I stayed for three days in Madrid to recover .

“Today I hit full (strength). There is no risk to do anything worse to the
injury, so I will play and see how it goes.”

The world No. 34 opens against the winner from Brit Jack Draper and Borna Coric.

Medvedev said he cannot be bothered with worrying about defending his 2023 winner’s points, insisting even losing early won’t make a huge difference in his standing in the season points race.

“I’m second in the race and I feel great about it. Even if I lose the 1,000 (ranking) points, I’ll actually probably stay No. 4 (in the cumulative 52-week rolling rankings).

“If I continue to play good until the end of the season I can maybe become No. 2 or 3, whatever.”

The 28-year-old added: “I don’t feel pressure at all. I’m feeling only happy that I won here last year, and I want to do well this year.”

Main photo:- Daniil Medvedev quit in Madrid against Jiri Lehecka