"Does somebody care about this?";"Random replacements" - Fans react as Taylor Fritz, Daniil Medvedev & more withdraw from World Tennis League 2024

Several prominent players, including Daniil Medvedev, Taylor Fritz, and Hubert Hurkacz, have withdrawn from the upcoming World Tennis League. Their replacements were announced online, sparking a wave of reactions from fans.

The league shared the announcement on its official Instagram account on Sunday, December 15. Denis Shapovalov will replace Daniil Medvedev, while Jordan Thompson will step in for Fritz. Additionally, Alexander Shevchenko takes over for Hubert Hurkacz, and Simona Halep replaces Barbora Krejcikova.

According to the Instagram update, the official reason for the players' withdrawal is as follows:

"Due to unforeseen personal reasons and unavoidable circumstances like injury concerns, the line-up for the upcoming edition has changed."

A fan later shared the post on Reddit garnering reactions from a few other fans. A user showed little interest and wrote:

"Does somebody care about this? I first heard about it 2 weeks agon here on reddit but i don't even know anything about it."

Comment byu/Vescilla from discussion intennis

"I first heard about it literally just now," another wrote.

"Wonder why Taylor withdrew," one commented.

Here are a few more reactions from the fans:

"Huh, does that mean Halep and Kyrigos get to play double together? I'm sure that's gonna end well," a fan said.

"Random replacements," another chimed in.

"With how over tennis Meddy seemed by the end of the season I'm glad," one said.

The off-season event will take place at Abu Dhabi's Etihad Arena from December 19 to 22, 2024. Aryna Sabalenka, Nick Kyrgios, Stefanos Tsitsipas, and Iga Swiatek are among the notable participants.

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Taylor Fritz last competed at the Davis Cup knockouts while Daniil Medvedev played at the ATP Finals in Turin

Taylor Fritz at 2024 Australian Open - Image Source: Getty

Taylor Fritz last competed in the Davis Cup quarterfinals in Malaga, Spain, where Team USA faced Australia. The American, who faced Alex de Minaur, claimed the first set 6-3. He then secured a 6-4 win in the second set, earning his 200th triumph on hard courts.

However, Fritz's compatriot Ben Shelton fell to Thanasi Kokkinakis in a closely contested opener, 6-1, 4-6, 7-6(16). In the decisive doubles match, Australia's Matthew Ebden and Jordan Thompson defeated Tommy Paul and Shelton in straight sets, 6-4, 6-4, eliminating Team USA from the prestigious event.

Daniil Medvedev, on the other hand, last competed at the ATP Finals in Riyadh, where his performance fell short of expectations. The Russian began his campaign with a 4-6, 3-6 loss to Taylor Fritz. He bounced back with a 6-2, 6-4 victory over Alex de Minaur but his run ended when eventual champion Jannik Sinner defeated him 6-3, 6-4 in his final round-robin match.