Long before Daniil Medvedev emerged as a major champion in New York, he earned a reputation as manic madman in Paris.
World No. 2 Medvedev tuned up Facundo Bagnis 2, 2 and 2 in a sharp Roland Garros opener today.
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The reigning US Open champion, who was sidelined for nearly the entire clay-court season recovering from hernia surgery, scored his first clay-court win since sweeping Cristian Garin to reach the 2021 Roland Garros quarterfinal.
After today’s 98-minute victory, Medvedev recalled how a Paris junior tournament played a pivotal part in his mental maturation.
Contesting a Tennis Europe 14-and-under tournament, a teenage Medvedev was cruising to a 6-0, 5-0 lead when he lost a game—then he lost his mind.
“I was winning 6-0, 5-0, lost [a game], got completely crazy, won the next, and everybody was, ‘Who is this guy who goes crazy when it's 6-0, 5-1 for him?’ “ Medvedev recalled of his manic junior days. “That's how I was. In a good way it's competitive, but then at one moment I understood that it can negatively affect your tennis. But I definitely didn't understand it after this match. It was much later.
“Yeah, I'm still learning, because I have some tantrums, if it's the right word, sometimes on the court. Usually I'm not happy about it. The most important is either to know how to react them or better how not to do them and just, yeah, stay focused on the match.”
The man who once famously fingered raucous New York City fans—then won them over with his heart, grit and competitive spirit en route to his first major final at the 2019 US Open—has a lot on his mind these days.
The Australian Open finalist is trying to translate his game, predicated on firing flat strikes, to his worst surface with just two clay-court matches to his credit in the past year. Medvedev is facing the pressure of defending quarterfinal points in Paris knowing he’s banned, along with all Russians and Belarusians, from playing Wimbledon next month.
Adding to a most bizarre Roland Garros return is it’s conceivable Medvedev could regain world No. 1 again without playing the world’s most prestigious tournament as top-ranked Novak Djokovic can’t defend his ranking points for winning Wimbledon because the ATP has stripped The Championships of ranking points.
“Very strange,” Medvedev said of his situation. “I need to be honest, but as I said last time, I'd be really happy to play Wimbledon. I love Wimbledon. I love playing on grass. I will play on grass after Roland Garros. But if I cannot, I mean, just going to prepare for next tournaments, and, you know, just follow what's happening there.
“There are no points, I become No. 1 well, great for me. If there are points, I cannot become No. 1, I'm going to be gutted. It is what it is. I cannot change some decisions, both about ATP and Wimbledon.”
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How can Medvedev successfully alter his game to adapt to clay?
The lanky Russian who trains in France at the Mouratoglou Academy and has enjoyed success with his long-time French coach Gilles Cervara, snapped a streak of four straight French Open first-round exits with his quarterfinal burst last year. Medvedev believes success on dirt starts with his feet—and giving himself a bit more margin on his flat strikes as the balls collect clay and become heavier.
“It's about the movement, and I think my strokes are given like in the air because the balls are much heavier, they have dirt on them, so a lot of my balls, not at Roland Garros but other courts, for example, it was the case in Geneva, I feel like I'm doing a good job but it just goes in the net,” Medvedev said. “When you don't know what you can improve, that's where it's tough because you're, like, What do I do next shot?
"Yeah, it's not the case here, so I'm happy about it.”
Medvedev will try to keep moving forward with a round two test vs. Laslo Djere.
The 56th-ranked Serbian swept Ricardas Berankis 6-4, 6-4, 6-4. The winner of the Medvedev-Djere match will meet either 28th-seeded Serbian Miomir Kecmanovic or Alexander Bublik for a spot in the round of 16.