Novak Djokovic Returns to World No.1 Spot After Gael Monfils Upsets Daniil Medvedev at Indian Wells 2022

Daniil Medvedev and the BNP Paribas Open don’t gel well together as the Russian star failed to create impeccable records on Indian Wells courts over the years. Last year, Medvedev lost to Grigor Dimitrov at the same venue in a rather surprising fashion. After entering the tournament the no.1 seed, expectations were riding high on Medvedev as he had to perform well to hold on to his no.1 ranking.

But, on Monday, the Russian had yet another bad day at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden as he lost in a three-set marathon to the Frenchman Gael Monfils. Monfils, who looked confident with the conditions suiting his game right from the start, took time to adjust to his opponent’s game and later gained consistent momentum and put pressure on Medvedev.

Daniil Medvedev failed to give stiff competition to Gael Monfils at Indian Wells 2022

On the other hand, the world no.1 couldn’t get any sort of help from the court on his flat strokes as he was unable to sustain baseline rallies against Monfils. With his accurate serve, Medvedev managed to clinch the first set by a narrow margin, 6-4.

But, Monfils had the upper hand right from the latter half of the second set as Medvedev appeared to get more and more frustrated over lack of proper shot execution. As a result, unforced errors flew from the Russian’s racquet and he lost the second, 3-6.

Mar 12, 2022; Indian Wells, CA, USA; Daniil Medvedev (RUS) hits a shot in his 2nd round match against Tomas Machac (CZE) at the BNP Paribas open at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

During the third set, Daniil failed to display any sort of resilience as he imploded and gave away the advantage to Gael Monfils. After losing his first two serves in the decider, there was no coming back for the Russian as Monfils came out in flying colors to seal the match. This was only the second time that Gael defeated a player ranked no.1 on the ATP tour.

With this defeat, Daniil Medvedev will lose his no.1 ranking to Novak Djokovic as the Serbian will reign supreme once again on the ATP tour.

Wow.

Gael Monfils beats a world number 1 just for the 2nd time in his career (1st since 2009), defeating Daniil Medvedev 4-6, 6-3, 6-1 to reach the last 16 in Indian Wells vs. Alcaraz.

Djokovic will return to the top of the rankings next Monday, 3 weeks after leaving the spot. pic.twitter.com/fV1dxLi5h6

— José Morgado (@josemorgado) March 14, 2022

It will be clearly frustrating for Daniil to lose the no.1 spot quickly. But, the Russian can bounce back in Miami, where conditions suit his game and try to bag some points under his belt.

Also read: ‘My Journey as an Elite Athlete Isn’t Over Yet’ – Roger Federer Provides Massive Respite for fans in a Wholesome Message to His Foundation

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