Just under a year ago, having experienced one of the most crushing defeats of his career, Daniil Medvedev arrived in the post-match debrief with a message. He had led Rafael Nadal by two sets in the Australian Open final, only to see his lead crumble, a raucous crowd cheering his opponent and deliberately attempting to disrupt him.
Medvedev opened his press conference with a long, detailed monologue, explaining the passion he had in his career, but how certain moments like that one, his five hours on-court before a hostile crowd, had chipped away at his hope until he had none left.
“If there is a tournament on hard courts in Moscow, before Roland Garros or Wimbledon, I’m going to go there even if I miss the Wimbledon or Roland Garros or whatever. The kid stopped dreaming. The kid is going to play for himself.”
In the immediate aftermath, Medvedev handled himself well. He continued his schedule as planned, only an injury during the clay season and Wimbledon’s decision to ban Russian players the only changes. In February, Medvedev rose to become the first world No 1 in 18 years other than Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer or Andy Murray. He had backed up his triumph at the 2021 US Open and the Australian Open final that followed.
Yet one of the stories of the months since has been how Medvedev has quietly slipped into a mini-slump. He was consistent throughout last year and at times played extremely well, reaching five finals, but he managed to win only two titles. Although he reliably navigated deep into draws on hard court and grass, he also consistently fell away in the biggest moments.
As a result, Medvedev has fallen from No 1 to No 8. He is now the second-highest ranked player from Russia behind Andrey Rublev. Should he perform poorly in Melbourne, he could theoretically fall out of the top 10.
On the court, Medvedev’s serve and usually impenetrable defence have become increasingly vulnerable. His ability to outlast almost every rival in long, attritional rallies, has evaded him in the big moments, error-free stretches replaced with too many mistakes. Since the Australian Open, Medvedev has lost in the fourth round of both slams he has played in.
Last week, Medvedev won his first three matches of the season before facing Novak Djokovic in the semi-final in Adelaide, a match that seemed like a litmus test for both. Djokovic eased to a 6-3, 6-4 win.
In recent years, the pair have had countless tight matches, Medvedev winning four of their six meetings between 2019 and 2021. Medvedev paired his physical talents with intelligence and audacity. But despite Djokovic’s preoccupation with an apparent hamstring injury, Medvedev was brushed aside with ease.
It is another reminder of the many different aspects of the sport Djokovic, Nadal and Federer made look simple for so long. Winning over 80% of matches in most seasons set the tone. No matter what was going on in their lives away from the court, they all spent well over a decade delivering excellence.
Medvedev is not the only recent first-time grand slam champion forced to adjust. After winning the US Open in 2020, Dominic Thiem first dealt with mental tiredness as he reckoned with an achievement he had been pursuing his entire life. Although, at 19, he remains incredibly young, even Carlos Alcaraz is fighting his own frustrations, with injuries taking him out of his first two big tournaments after becoming a grand-slam champion at last year’s US Open.
But, at the same time, Medvedev is still searching for solutions, trying to find the form that allowed him to reach the top. “Let’s be honest. I’m confident I’m going to be able to do something big in the future. Just need to continue working,” Medvedev said recently. Eventually, and perhaps as soon as the coming fortnight, he will be favoured for the biggest finals again.
