- The world number 5 has not been seen in Australia before the Grand Slam
- Medvedev was runner-up to Jannik Sinner in Melbourne last year
Daniil Medvedev has attracted attention by not attending any warm-up tournaments ahead of the Australian Open, but has now revealed that he stayed away because his wife Daria has just given birth to their second child.
Last year’s runner-up in the men’s singles in Melbourne announced the happy news on Instagram on Wednesday, showing his followers a photo of him cradling the newcomer in a hospital bed alongside his daughter Alisa, accompanied by the simple caption ‘Happy 2025 ‘. and a red love heart emoji.
Medvedev did not mention the name or gender of the new baby, and many tennis fans expressed their surprise in the comments, saying they had no idea he and Daria were expecting.
She didn’t appear in his post and hadn’t been seen on the court with him for months, and her last Instagram post three months ago included a photo of her with Alisa that didn’t show any hint of a baby bump.
The 28-year-old also skipped tournaments leading up to the Australian Open last year.
However, not going down to acclimatise to the Australian summer did him no harm as he won all the way to the men’s singles final, where he fell in five sets to Jannik Sinner, who stormed home despite losing the first two sets of the match.
Daniil Medvedev left his fans in shock when he broke the news that he had become a father for the second time by posting this photo of him with the new arrival and his daughter Alisa.
The Russian star and his wife Daria (pictured together) did an incredible job of keeping their shocking news a secret.
Medvedev also won the first two sets of the 2022 men’s singles final in Melbourne before losing the last three and Rafael Nadal became the first man to win 21 major titles.
He will find out just how difficult his path back to the final is when the draw for this year’s tournament is announced on Thursday Australian time.
Last year, the Russian star opened up about how becoming a father has changed his sometimes irritable on-court personality.
“Hopefully it will help me mature a little,” he said.
‘A lot of times I’m still immature on the court, but I feel like I’m slowly improving every year. That’s my goal.
‘In life, hopefully, it made me more mature and more responsible. Without a doubt, being a father is a great responsibility.”
Medvedev is pictured after his crushing loss to Jannik Sinner in last year’s men’s singles final in Melbourne, the second time he has lost the crown despite winning the first two sets.
And last September he spoke about his hopes for Alisa and how she has changed him.
“I don’t always manage to be the best parent I want to be, but (raising a child) teaches you,” he said. tennis.com.
‘If something doesn’t go right for her, then she will throw a toy or bite it in anger. My wife looks at me and says, “Okay, where does it come from?” And that’s pretty funny because you start to wonder if it’s just genetics and I don’t have an answer to this question.
“I can repeat 10 times: ‘Alisa, let me help you with a car. It doesn’t work, so you have to turn it on.” She won’t leave you until she decides she wants your help. Then she will come and give you the car. If you try to help her without her accepting it, she will cry.
“Yes, my character.”