It has been a slow burner but Daniil Medvedev’s love affair with Paris is finally beginning to blossom.
The Russian second seed is notorious for winding up crowds and had many a run-in with the Melbourne fans at the Australian Open earlier this year.
Medvedev has also had his angry moments at the US Open and here at Roland Garros.
But the 26-year-old, who lives in France and has been speaking French in his on-court post-match interviews, has become something of a crowd favourite, a de facto home player.
“I’m not talking about (the) Australian crowd, it was just this year,” Medvedev said after a comfortable 6-3 6-4 6-3 second-round win over Serbia’s Laslo Djere.
“If not, usually I’m super happy to go to Australia and play there. Let’s see how it’s going to be next year.
“Maybe again, I know I did some mistakes also. It’s not like they just chose me and said ‘we’re going to be against him’.
“With (the) French crowd also it was up and down sometimes. I think the first three times I lost in Roland Garros it was against French guys, and it was tough. They were definitely not cheering for me.
“Playing against a French guy in Roland Garros is one of the toughest things in tennis.
“You know, first I didn’t like – not that I didn’t like playing in France – but I didn’t have good results. Now I manage to win in Bercy, in Marseille, (reached the) quarters in Roland Garros, so I love playing in France.
“Sometimes you need time to adapt.”
Medvedev will face another Serbian, Miomir Kecmanovic, in the third round.
