'I loved it' - Daniil Medvedev explains why he applied ice to his head in US Open win over Stefan Kozlov

Daniil Medvedev explained to Eurosport why he asked for an ice bag to put on his head late on during his straight sets win over Stefan Kozlov. The world No. 1 dominated his American opponent, hitting 36 winners and breaking seven times, as he advanced into the second round where he will play Arthur Rinderknech.

Ad But with the match seemingly nearly finished, Russian requested a plastic bag full of ice to be applied to his head. US OpenDefending US Open champion Medvedev powers through opener2 HOURS AGO He said he has started doing it as a way of dealing with the hot temperatures on court. “What happened this year is that, because I didn't play Wimbledon, I had three weeks of preparation in the south of France,” he told Eurosport’s Barbara Schett and Mats Wilander.

“In the whole of Europe it was pretty hot this summer, so it was really tough to practice to be honest. “After one hour [of practice] I felt like ‘Okay, oh my god I'm dying’. So we’d always try to find the best solution to fight with it because after one hour I was sitting on the bench and I was talking with my coaches saying ‘I can’t move anymore’.

“So putting ice on my head helped, and today I did it at 5-0 to test it out and I really loved it. I felt fresh afterwards.” US Open live Defending US Open champion Medvedev powers through opener With Novak Djokovic not competing at this year’s US Open, Medvedev – who won the US Open in 2021 – is one of the favourites to win the Grand Slam again this year. He says one of his biggest concerns is facing a big-serving opponent as he admits to struggling to return their first serves.