Daniil Medvedev shares his theory on what happened to Tallon Griekspoor’s hamstring before withdrawing from Dubai final

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Daniil Medvedev won the 2026 Dubai Tennis Championships.

He did so without playing a single point in the final, as Tallon Griekspoor withdrew due to injury.

The withdrawal didn’t come as too much of a surprise, as Griekspoor hurt his hamstring during his semifinal win over Andrey Rublev.

Speaking to the media after Griekspoor officially withdrew, Medvedev gave his verdict on the Dutchman’s injury.

Daniil Medvedev thinks Tallon Griekspoor’s injury must have gotten worse overnight

The Russian shared what he believes happened to Griekspoor overnight.

“Yeah, I mean, of course [it’s] unfortunate,” said Medvedev.

“But Tallon [Griekspoor], I could see yesterday that maybe he had an injury.

“You never know how these injuries develop through the night.

“Sometimes they get easier, and you can play, like with some soreness, and sometimes they get worse.

“I guess it got worse.”

Medvedev would have preferred to play the final, but is still pleased with his efforts in Dubai.

“Look, I mean, I cannot do anything about it,” he said.

“I played a great tournament, the four matches I played.

Daniil Medvedev at the 2026 Dubai Tennis Championships

• 2026 Dubai Tennis Championships 1R [WIN] vs Juncheng Shang, 6-1, 6-3
• 2026 Dubai Tennis Championships 2R [WIN] vs Stan Wawrinka, 6-2, 6-3
• 2026 Dubai Tennis Championships QF [WIN] vs Jenson Brooksby, 6-2, 6-1
• 2026 Dubai Tennis Championships SF [WIN] vs Felix Auger-Aliassime, 6-4, 6-2
• 2026 Dubai Tennis Championships F [Walkover] vs Tallon Griekspoor

“Of course, I wanted to play the final, but it is what it is.

“I played an unbelievable level yesterday. I would, in a way, take it as a final for me.

“Happy to win the tournament.”

The 30-year-old went on to explain why he was cautious of underestimating an injured Griekspoor, had he played the final.

“I knew he might have something, but many, many times we play injured players,” said Medvedev.

“Actually, the moment you start thinking about, Oh, maybe I make him move, I need to make him play, it doesn’t work well.

“So I was just ready to play my match, to play the way I want to play, to play the way I need to play.

“Unfortunately, this would not happen. I won’t even have to think about it now.”

Medvedev will now turn his attention to Indian Wells, an event he can attack with full confidence following his triumph in Dubai.

Daniil Medvedev hopes to bring Dubai confidence to Indian Wells

“Yeah, of course, [there is] a lot of confidence,” he said.

“But tennis is a very fast-going sport. One week you can play not as you want, the other week you’re playing amazing.

“I just hope to bring this confidence from the four matches I played into Indian Wells, for sure.

“But again, I would be kind of more disappointed if the whole week I would be struggling to find my level, like every match would be a battle.

“I played unreal the whole week. I was actually really looking forward to the final, trying to play even better than I did.

“But it is what it is. I’m really happy with the way the week turned out in general.”

Medvedev’s positive week in Dubai earned him 500 ranking points.

The Russian is now just 45 points away from a top-10 return.

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He will, however, have his work cut out for him in Indian Wells if he does want to break back into the top 10.

Having reached the semifinals last year, Medvedev is defending 400 points in 2026.

Therefore, he will need to make another deep run this year, or he’ll have to wait a few more weeks.

Only time will tell if Medvedev can carry his Dubai form through to Indian Wells, but it will certainly be something to look out for.

The Indian Wells main draw begins on Wednesday, March 4.