Daniil Medvedev reflects on his 2024 season | ATP Tour

Match the Reaction

Medvedev proud despite 'Six and a half out of 10' season

World No. 4 went without a trophy for the entire season for the first time since 2017

November 14, 2024

Whether things are going according to plan or not, Daniil Medvedev rarely minces his words when it comes to honest self-evaluation.

The 28-year-old was in a philosophical mood on Thursday night in Turin, where his season ended with a straight sets loss to Jannik Sinner at the Nitto ATP Finals. Despite a group stage exit at the end of a respectable season to ensure his first season without a tour-level trophy since 2017, Medvedev identified many positives to offset his 2024 disappointment.

“I'll probably finish number 4 in the world, unless Taylor [Fritz] it draws a lot of anger, it's amazing,” Medvedev said in a press conference after the match. “[I don’t] need to say it. It's amazing. In a very difficult game, with many players, I want to be number 1 in the world, but I haven't played well enough this year, so far, to be number 1 in the world. Jannik plays much better. He proved it many times.

“But I'm number 4 in the world of tennis. I'm very proud of that because I struggled all year. Every practice, every game was difficult for me. Many games. Before I felt I had an edge over my opponent and easily defeated them. Now I needed to win three sets, tie breaks, breaks at the end of the set, and so on.

“I can [rate my season] somewhere around a six and a half out of 10, which means a lot of work to be done to get better, but still a lot of good memories too. I'm looking forward to next season.”

Except when he put together a three-match streak in the second set of his Ilie Nastase Group match against Sinner in Turin, Medvedev struggled to assert himself against the No. 1 in the PIF ATP Rankings. Again, the 20-time tour-level champion is happy to put his weight behind the Italian.

“Jannik is playing well. He is fully confident right now,” Medvedev commented. “I watched his practice before the game. He misses little and hits hard. Often times, most players who don't miss much, at least don't hit hard. He can hit hard, very hard, maybe one of the three, four, five hitters on Tour, and he doesn't miss.

“It's hard to play him. Putting under pressure. You have to deal with it. Somehow I didn't deal with it well enough. I missed shots at key moments. He won the game. Actually, it's that simple. ”

Thursday's loss in Turin was Medvedev's fifth in six meetings this year against Sinner, who leads the Lexus ATP Head2Head series 8-7. The Italian has won one final (at the Australian Open), one semifinal (in Miami) and two quarter-finals (at the US Open and Shanghai), making him a major contender when it comes to describing the 2024 medal-less Medvedev.

“Look, he lost a little bit this year,” said Sinner's Medvedev. “If you want to win the title, you will face him at the same time. It is not easy to beat him. Many people try. Many people fail. There's one guy who does it more times than others, and that's Carlos [Alcaraz]. He is a very strong competitor.

“He's probably one of the best players I've ever faced. I dealt with the Big Four a bit when he was a bit older, and maybe [their] the speed was not the same. I will try to work before the season. Maybe at some point he loses confidence, starts to miss some balls. Besides, everyone, not just me, is in the most difficult years ahead of us because he is so young.”

Renowned for his defensive skills and refusal to lie down in extended circles, Medvedev has never been one to shy away from hard graft. The former World No. 1 is ready to return to action in the near future as he looks for a major breakthrough against his closest rivals on the Tour.

“In preparation, we will certainly try, I think we have created something new,” said Medvedev. “I can see right now that it's not good enough, especially for guys like Jannik and Carlos. I'm not sure I'll be able to get better, but I'll try. I will try to be better in other parts.

“I feel like if we're just talking about tactics, I feel like I played well. Just killing. You don't need to miss it, go, go, go. I couldn't do it. That's what we're going to work on a lot in the pre-season, to build the best version of myself, which isn't easy when you're 28 years old.

“As for the qualifications… I'm not that worried. As I say, all tournaments are difficult to win… Yes, I want to win the Masters and Grand Slams more than any other tournament. But maybe go to another tournament and win it. You will never know. Overall, I've had some very good runs and some very bad races, so that's fine with me.”