Tennis champ Daniil Medvedev lauds Saudi Arabias Diriyah Tennis Cup, calls for its return

DUBAI: Recently crowned Russian tennis player Daniil Medvedev has praised Saudi Arabia’s organization of the inaugural Diriyah Tennis Cup held this weekend, adding the tournament should be a regular tour fixture.

Fresh off his win at the tournament held on the outskirts of Riyadh, Medvedev said: “I really loved everything here – organization, court, fans, people. Everything was super great and hopefully it’s not going to stop and I’m going to come back next year. I think in three or four years it could be one of the best tournaments on tour.”

He said the other players were also happy about the local support, and that the Cup has “all the ingredients” of a standout tour event.

Belgian player David Goffin said: “It was great. The fans were super excited to see professional tennis here. The atmosphere was super nice on center court. I hope to come back next year for what will hopefully be an even better tournament for me.”

World number five Medvedev, 23, emerged victorious in the weekend’s multimillion-dollar event played out at the 15,000-seater Diriyah Arena – besting seven other players during three days of hard-court tennis.

Prince Abdulaziz Bin Turki Al-Faisal Al-Saud, Chairman of the General Sports Authority of Saudi Arabia, has confirmed that plans for the tournament’s return in 2020 were already underway.

“This is only the start of tennis in our country but what an incredible start,” he said.

He added: “Already we are discussing plans for an even bigger and better 2020 edition.”