- World No.5 hasn’t been sighted Down Under before grand slam
- Medvedev was runner-up to Jannik Sinner in Melbourne last year
Daniil Medvedev has raised eyebrows by failing to come Down Under for any warm-up tournaments ahead of the Australian Open – but he’s now revealed 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 new arrival in a hospital bed along with his daughter Alisa, accompanied by the simple caption ‘Happy 2025’ and a red love-heart emoji.
Medvedev made no mention of the new baby’s name or gender, and many tennis fans expressed their shock in the comments, saying they had no idea he and Daria were expecting.
She did not feature in his post and hadn’t been seen courtside with him for months, and her last Instagram post three months ago featured a photo of her with Alisa that didn’t show any hint of a baby bump.
The 28-year-old was also a no-show in the lead-up tournaments for the Australian Open last year.
However, not coming down to acclimatise himself to the Australian summer did him no harm as he won through to the men’s singles final, where he fell in five sets to Jannik Sinner, who stormed home despite dropping the first two sets of the match.
Daniil Medvedev left his fans in shock when he dropped the news that he has 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 heartwarming news under wraps
Medvedev also won the first two sets of the 2022 men’s singles final in Melbourne before going on to drop the final three as Rafael Nadal became the first man to win 21 major titles.
He’ll find out how tough a path he has back to the final 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 prickly personality on the court.
‘Hopefully it helps me mature a little bit,’ he said.
‘Many times I’m still immature on the court, but I feel like I’m improving slowly every year. That’s my goal.
‘In life, hopefully, it made me more mature and more responsible. It’s a big responsibility, for sure, to be a father.’
Medvedev is pictured after his shattering loss to Jannik Sinner in last year’s men’s singles final in Melbourne – the second time he’s lost the crown despite winning the first two sets
And last September he spoke of his hopes for Alisa and how she’s changed him.
‘I don’t always succeed to be the best father Iwant to be, but it [raising a child] teaches you,’ he told Tennis.com.
‘If something doesn’t go her way, then she throws a toy in anger or bites it. My wife is looking at me, saying, “Okay, where does it come from?” And that’s pretty funny because you start asking yourself if it’s just pure 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 go, so you need to turn it on.” She won’t let you, until she decides that she wants your help. Then she’s going to come and give you the car. If you try to help without her accepting it, she’s going to cry.
‘Yeah, my character.’
