Daniil Medvedev's Australian Open outburst draws 5-figure fine 4x bigger than what Serena Williams had to pay after threatening judge in New York

Daniil Medvedev suffered a shock upset at the 2025 Australian Open, being knocked out of the tournament by 19-year-old qualifier Learner Tien. The Russian didn't go down without putting up a fuss, and his on court antics have resulted in a $76,000 fine, which is four times more than what Serena Williams paid after her controversial 2018 US Open final.

Medvedev’s campaign in Melbourne got off to a difficult start, as he battled Thai qualifier Kasidit Samrej over the course of five sets. While the Russian eventually emerged victorious 6-2, 4-6, 3-6, 6-1, 6-2, the match got chippy, and at one point the World No.5 repeatedly smashed his racket into the net, which damaged the net camera as well as his racket.

In his second round, the 28-year-old took on Learner Tien, and was outdone 6-3, 7-6(4), 6-7(8), 1-6, 7-6(10-7) over the course of four hours and 49 minutes by the youngster. Throughout the match, Daniil Medvedev was quick to let his frustration show, throwing his racquet toward the sidelines, arguing with the umpire after being called out for repeated foot faults, and miming to smash a ball at the line judge responsible for the calls. He also skipped his obligatory post-match press conference.

As a result, the Russian has been fined $10,000 for destroying the net camera in his match against Samrej, and $66,000 for his ‘inappropriate behaviour’ in his clash against Tien.

Prior to this, Serena Williams had made headlines in 2018 after she got into multiple intense arguments with the umpire during her US Open final against Naomi Osaka. As a result, the tennis star had been fined $17,000. Later, Williams sent an apology message to Osaka for the incident, and also revealed that she started seeing a therapist to recover from the emotional intensity.

Daniil Medvedev reacts to being fined for breaking the net camera

Medvedev at the Laver Cup presentation at the Brandenburg Gate (Image Source: Getty)

For Daniil Medvedev, the Australian Open marked his season debut for 2025. There were high expectations for the Russian, as he entered the tournament having reached three of the event’s last four finals.

However, the tennis star’s campaign got off to a harder start than expected, as he needed over three hours to make it past Thailand's Kasidit Samrej. After the match, Medvedev joked about the moment he smashed his racquet into the net camera, saying in a post-match interview,

"The camera was very, very strong, because my racquet didn’t handle the damage, but the camera did. I was very surprised. The fine is usually for breaking the racquet, and the camera is going to cost some, but I don’t think Go Pro is that expensive."

Over the course of his career, Daniil Medvedev has reached three Australian Open finals and one Wimbledon semifinal. In 2021, the Russian won his maiden Grand Slam when he was crowned champion at the US Open. Medvedev was also the 2020 ATP Finals champion.