Daniil Medvedev’s debut at the Nitto ATP Finals did not go as planned, as the Russian was toppled in straight sets by Stefanos Tsitsipas, but the ATP’s win leader and 2019 US Open finalist hopes that he can find his best tennis by Wednesday when he is set to take on World No.1 Rafael Nadal in round robin play at the 02 Arena.



Medvedev, who had only played one match since winning his second Masters 1000 title at Shanghai in October, said he is having difficulty locating the level that saw him win 29 of 32 matches and reach six consecutive finals from the beginning of the US hard court summer through Shanghai.

“I'm struggling a little bit with finding back my level I had in USA and Shanghai and St. Petersburg, which is, I should say, I think normal for any sportsman,” he told reporters after his loss to Tsitsipas on Monday. “That's what is amazing about top 3, big 3 and Murray before, that even when you kind of look at them and you think, ‘okay, they are not playing as good as they can, they still win these matches.’”

Medvedev, who leads that ATP with 59 wins, owns eight Top 10 wins in 2019. He says he can take some positives from his play on Monday. “I have to say I'm positive about the way I played today,” he said. “Of course I hate to lose, so I'm really disappointed to lose, but hopefully I can make it better in the next two matches.”

Big thanks to @tecnifibre, the official stringer for the #NittoATPFinals this week. And also, @DaniilMedwed 👏#FightSmart🔻 pic.twitter.com/3QXeoVKsE5

— TennisNow (@Tennis_Now) November 12, 2019