Daniil Medvedev suffered his first early exit in 2024 after losing to Karen Khachanov in the third round of the Monte-Carlo Masters.
Khachanov was able to secure a 6-3, 7-5 victory over Medvedev. However, the latter made headlines for the wrong reasons when he lost his temper against the referees.
Elsewhere, Carlos Alcaraz joins Rafael Nadal on the sidelines after suffering an untimely injury, while Jannik Sinner’s confidence remains at an all-time high despite switching to clay courts.
Jannik Sinner is up there with Novak Djokovic in the Monte-Carlo Masters 2024 odds as the favourites, and there’s a huge chance that these two top seeds will convene in a collision course late in the competition.
Without further ado, continuing reading below, as SBOTOP serves up the latest Monte-Carlo Masters 2024 updates.
Medvedev lashes out about the poor refereeing
Daniil Medvedev’s frustrations with the referees started two days ago when he took on Gael Monfils in the second round, as he was not happy with two calls on his baseline while serving at 1-2 in the second set.
The first came after the Russian international had a winner from Monfils’ forehand, which was called out by the line judge. Umpire Mohamed Lahyani came down from his chair to check whether the ball was out. However, Lahyani said that the ball was in even if the replays showed that the initial ruling by the line judge (out) was correct.
It was the other way around at the very next point, as Medvedev expected an out call for Monfils’ shot, but it was called in by the line judge.
Lahyani had to restrain Medvedev, as the 28-year-old was berating the line judge. However, that didn’t stop the Russian from eventually beating Monfils 6-2, 6-4.
Medvedev was livid at the officials again in the third round, but he was unable to get the victory this time.
After he lost the first set 6-3 and with the second set level at 5-5, Khachanov’s shot was ruled in by the officials even though it was out based on the replays. Khachanov earned two break points because of the ruling, and he took advantage of Medvedev’s double fault.
Medvedev threw his racket to the wall of the court in anger, and when he made it back to his chair, he expressed his displeasure to umpire Carlos Bernardes and Cedric Mourier.
“It’s the second day in a row guys. Open your freaking eyes. Sit there and do something,” said Medvedev.
Because of his outburst, Medvedev was docked a point for the next game, which gave Khachanov enough momentum to claim his spot in the quarter-finals, where he’ll face Stefanos Tsitsipas.
Alcaraz withdraws, looks ahead to Roland Garros
Carlos Alcaraz’s quest of reaching world no. 1 status has hit a snag after he pulled out from the Monte-Carlo Masters due to an injury to his right forearm.
The 20-year-old Spaniard, whose last match was a two sets defeat to Grigor Dimitrov in the Miami Open last month, was due to face Felix Auger-Aliassime in the second round.
With Alcaraz sidelined, lucky loser Lorenzo Sonego took his spot, and the Italian defeated Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-4, 7-5 to advance to the third round.
“I’ve been working in Monte Carlo and trying to recover until the last minute from an injured pronator teres in my right arm, but it was not possible, and I cannot play. I was really looking forward to playing. See you next year,” posted Alcaraz on his X (formerly known as Twitter).
Before he announced his withdrawal, Alcaraz had been training with straps to his arm. According to reports, his injury is not that serious, so the expectation is that he’ll be ready to go for the Roland Garros, where he reached the semi-finals last year.
After a breakthrough campaign last year, Alcaraz has only won one trophy so far this year when he successfully defended his Indian Wells Masters title.
Sinner continues to roll
Jannik Sinner is on course to win his fourth title in 2024 after he eased past Jan-Lennard Struff in the Round of 16 last night to extend his winning streak to eight consecutive matches and improve to 24-1 overall.
Sinner outclassed Struff, as he dropped just 11 points on serve and had four service breaks. He also won 85-per cent on his first serve points.
Before the start of the Monte-Carlo Masters, many were wondering how Sinner would fare because he hasn’t been historically good in clay courts. But has been solid so far in France, and we won’t be surprised if he goes all the way once again.
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