"If anyone doesn't want to raise his voice, that's his position" - Daniil Medvedev opens up about Russia-Ukraine war, reiterates peace stance

Unlike Aryna Sabalenka, Daniil Medvedev did not shy away from answering questions of a political nature at the 2023 Wimbledon Championships and reiterated his previous call for peace between Russia and Ukraine.

With Russia, joined by Belarus, commencing its invasion of Ukraine early last year, players from both nations were denied entry into Wimbledon last year. In 2023, though, the ban has been lifted.

At her press conference earlier on Saturday, Sabalenka, who was hit with multiple political questions during her time at the French Open last month, announced that she will not entertain the same at SW19.

At his own press conference, though, Medvedev was asked if he was going to take a similar stance, to which the Russian answered in the negative.

"I feel like I can answer. I don't know, yeah, if everyone will be happy with my answers or not. Yeah, I feel like I can answer everything," Daniil Medvedev said.

Prompted to clarify his position, the World No. 3 said that he's not interested in forcing others to voice their opinion on the war, as it's their own prerogative. As for himself, Medvedev made it clear that he's against the war, the same statement he had made immediately after the invasion last year.

"The thing is that I have always said that I cannot talk for other players because I have always lived like this. I don't like to force others to say anything.

"If anyone doesn't want to raise his voice, that's his position. Mine, I always said the same. I am for peace. Yeah, not much more to add," Medvedev said.

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"When I go on the court, I always try to be myself" - Daniil Medvedev

2021 ATP Cup: Day 6

When another reporter asked Daniil Medvedev if he expected to receive the cold shoulder from fans at Wimbledon this year, the Russian said that he doesn't think it would be the case, as fans understand which side a player is on in most occassions.

Pointing out how it was not possible to keep on faking things, Medvedev reckons his approach of telling the truth about how feels at all times is the right way to go.

"As I said, for the fans, I have no idea. I don't know. I go on the court, then I see. When I go on the court, I always try to be myself. There are definitely some tournaments where people, for whatever reason, like me less. Some tournaments I feel like I get a lot of support. That's, of course, a great feeling," Daniil Medvedev said.

"The more I play tennis, the more I feel like if you try to fake something to win the fans over, first of all, they probably going to feel it, maybe if not straightaway but sooner or later. You're going to get, like, drown in these lies because you're not going to remember where you lied the last time. If you tell the truth, it's easier," he added.

The former World No. 1 will get his 2023 Wimbledon campaign underway against Arthur Fery on Tuesday.