Daniil Medvedev claimed his second Dubai title on Saturday following the withdrawal of his opponent, Tallon Griekspoor, due to a left hamstring injury.
The Russian also said he was unsure if he would be able to play next week’s ATP 1000 event in California after UAE airspace was partially closed due to Iranian strikes on the country, following the United States’ and Israel’s attacks on Iran.
Dutchman Griekspoor picked up the injury towards the end of the opening set of his semi-final win over Andrey Rublev on Friday and looked doubtful for the final when he limped into his post-match press conference.
The tournament announced on Saturday that Griekspoor “was deemed unfit to play in the ATP 500 men’s final following a medical assessment”.
“Of course, unfortunate, but Tallon, I could see yesterday that maybe he had an injury,” said Medvedev in audio quotes provided by the ATP.
“You never know how these injuries develop through the night. Sometimes they get easier, and you can play, like with some soreness. Sometimes they get worse, so I guess it got worse.
“I cannot do anything about it. I played a great tournament, the four matches I played. Of course, I wanted to play the final, but it is what it is.
“I played an unbelievable match yesterday, so I would, either way, take it as a final for me, and I’m happy to win the tournament.”
This is the first time Medvedev has been able to repeat a title. The 30-year-old Russian had won 22 trophies in 22 different events before clinching a second Dubai crown on Saturday to go with the one he captured in 2023.
“Of course, I take a lot of confidence. But tennis is a very fast-paced sport, so one week you can play not the way you want, and the other week you’re playing amazingly. So I just hope to bring this confidence from the four matches I played in Indian Wells, for sure.
“I played unreal the whole week, so I was actually really looking forward to the final and trying to play even better than I did. But it is what it is, and I’m really happy with how the week turned out in general.”
The Dubai doubles final went ahead as scheduled, and the singles final was set to be played despite Iran’s ongoing attacks on the UAE on Saturday.
The players are meant to fly straight to California for the upcoming Indian Wells Masters, but their travel plans have been disrupted due to regional airspace closures and the suspension of all flight operations at all Dubai airports until further notice.
Medvedev said he still didn’t know how he was going to make it to California and will be waiting on updates regarding the reopening of the Gulf region’s airspace.