Daniil Medvedev threatens to boycott matches in future in warning to ATP chiefs

Daniil Medvedev has revealed that he has spoken to his team about the prospect of boycotting matches in future due to timings. The former world No. 1 believes that play gets underway too early at plenty of competitions, and he therefore said he won't be among those stepping on to the court first further down the line.

Instead, if Medvedev is drawn to play during the early hours of the day, he has outlined how he intends to stay in bed and put a line through competing entirely - handing his opponent the victory regardless of the circumstances.

Speaking to The Guardian, he explained: "I was talking to my team today. I was like: 'When I'm 35, I might just boycott the 11am matches.' I'll be like: 'I'm not coming. Walkover.' Like: 'Yeah, I didn't wake up. Sorry, guys.'

"In my opinion, 11 is so early. You have to wake up at 6.30 in the morning, where, if you play at night, you wake up at 9am. So it changes the perspective of the match. It's crazy mentally."

Match timings in tennis has been a hot topic recently, with some players complaining about the impact that any delays have on matches, especially those waiting in the wings to compete. A number of players have spoken out about how they feel at a disadvantage when their games are pushed back, especially at the last minute.

Jessica Pegula explained: "If you're in a grand slam and you follow a three-out-of-five-set match, and they go five, you're screwed."

Karen Khachanov also feels there is an element of suffering from a 'false start' when your match does not take place at the allocated time, especially if it is changed at the last minute and therefore warmups have already taken place.

He said: "It's tough to wake yourself up again. Let's say you warmed up, you are full of adrenaline, you are ready to go on court, and then all of a sudden, there's another set.

"So you are thinking: 'OK, should I eat now? Should I just sleep? Should I watch the phone or I just, I don't know, look at the roof? What do I do? Play cards with my team?' Sometimes you just don't really know what to do."