Daniil Medvedev: "Try to drive my opponent crazy"
Daniil Medvedev found his way back to his previous year's form at the ATP Masters 1000 Evenv in Paris-Bercy. Following his win, the Russian revealed what made him so strong this week.
by Michael Rothschädl
last edit: Nov 10, 2020, 05:40 pm
"The level of my game was really great this week. I think it's not easy to play against me when I perform like that," Daniil Mevdedev said in the press conference after winning his third ATP Masters 1000 title after his Final success over Alexander Zverev in the Paris district of Bercy. In fact, the Russian presented himself in the French capital again in the condition in which he was able to put down a sensational North American swing last year. And now in the final of Paris-Bercy Zverev was able to stop.
He was "in the zone" in this game, he would have thought at the beginning of the third set, he just had to go to the front of the net, he could "hardly not score," said the 25-year-old. "When players are in this condition, they are very difficult to play on. Top players are able to do that. I hope I can play like that more often in the future," said Medvedev, who is considered one of the most intelligent players on the tour . He enjoyed training at very good schools in Moscow, even studying for a year. "I learned a lot there, including how to talk to people. I think I'm good at interviews and speeches, simply because I know how to speak well," said the fourth in the world rankings.
Shortened pre-season preparation for Medvedev
This training also helps him on the court, as the Russian explains: "Because I try to drive my opponents crazy." Compared to the previous season, in which Medvedev was unable to build on his performance in the previous year except for a few bright spots - such as his appearances at the US Open - nothing would actually have changed except the level of his tennis. It would not have been an easy season, especially the start of the season, because the preparation for this was much shorter than in previous years due to the first participation in London. "Actually, you have around eight weeks of preparation for the season from which you emerge as a physical monster, this year it was maybe three."
All these small details definitely have an impact on how you present yourself in the end, according to Medvedev. After the COVID-19-related interruption of the tour, he would not have had too many tournaments and two of them were made of sand, which is generally not the Russian's favorite surface. Also in the final against Zverev there were moments when the match could have developed in favor of the German. "But I knew exactly what I had to do and I knew that I had to meet him, otherwise I would lose the match. And I met him."