Medvedev wins Next Gen battle at Queen’s

Daniil Medvedev proved far too strong for Thanasi Kokkinakis in an ATP #NextGen battle on the lawns of Queen’s Club in London.

Medvedev progressed to the quarterfinals of his second straight grasscourt tournament with a 6-2 6-2 thumping of the Aussie wildcard in just 59 minutes.

It was all the second straight week Medvedev had beaten Kokkinakis; last week in ‘s-Hertogenbosch, the Russian 21-year-old scored a tighter 6-3 7-6(3) victory before falling to Ivo Karlovic in the last eight.

Kokkinakis, who’d arrived in the second round at Queen’s after a masterful performance to oust No.3 seed Milos Raonic, was at a loss to explain the rapid nature of Thursday’s defeat.

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“I’m dwelling on it big time. I wish I could put it to one side. As tennis players you have to have short-term memory but for me, this one is probably going to stick around for a while,” Kokkinakis lamented.

“I don’t think I played this bad before ever. It’s tough obviously with a bit of expectation after getting my best-ever win last match. That’s tennis. You can be up one minute and the next minute feel very far down.

“I’d say it was probably 99 per cent mental. I’m sore (after the Raonic match) but that wasn’t the reason today. My body didn’t really hold me back. The way I played today, I don’t think I would have beaten a futures player … I just need to get better.

“I was just trying to loosen up my shoulders and play free. I couldn’t do it. Even in the warm-up I felt tight, so I thought, ‘This is not looking good’. My serve and forehand are usually the things I rely on and even those were off with the fairies somewhere. I don’t know what it was. I couldn’t put a ball in the court. It was horrible.”

As the young Medvedev advanced, a trio of veterans joined him in the quarterfinals.

Marin Cilic, 28, was the only seed in action on Thursday and continued his fine form in London, streaking to a 6-0 6-4 win over qualifier Stefan Kozlov in just 65 minutes.

Feliciano Lopez, 35, brushed aside Jeremy Chardy in straight sets, while Sam Querrey, a champion at Queen’s in 2010, needed three sets to subdue young Aussie lucky loser Jordan Thompson.

Thompson in the first round has stunned world No.1, top seed and defending champion Andy Murray in straight sets.