Daniil Medvedev’s coach has claimed that facing Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal in all of his Grand Slam finals may have cost him the opportunity to win more big titles. Gilles Cervera made the excuse that it was a “big difference” to face the two icons instead of another opponent when asked whether the world No 3 hadn’t lifted as many Major trophies as he deserved.
Medvedev has cemented his place as one of the best players on tour in recent years, winning 20 titles and reaching No 1 in the world. While he is one of the few male players born after 1990 to lift a Grand Slam trophy, his ratio of finals to titles is significant. The Russian has reached five Major finals in his career, winning one at the 2021 US Open.
His most recent opportunity to capture another big trophy came at the same tournament, as he reached the final in New York again this year but lost out to Djokovic. And the 27-year-old’s coach believes that Medvedev’s opponents in the championship matches made it more difficult to pick up titles.
“Oh, that’s a tough question. Of course I would like him to win more,” Cervara told Championat when asked whether Medvedev deserved to win more Grand Slam titles than he had. Bringing in his excuse, he explained: “The only thing I can say is the fact that he played all his finals against Nadal and Djokovic.
Click here to join our WhatsApp community to be the first to receive breaking and exclusive tennis news.
Just in Navratilova opens up on her ‘stay away’ strategy after being terrified by cancer[LATEST]
“It’s completely different, it’s a big difference compared to other theoretical opponents in the finals.” The French coach is now hoping that his charge can come up against a different opponent in a Major final, like Carlos Alcaraz or Jannik Sinner.
He added: “And I would really like to see the final of the Grand Slam tournament with the participation of Daniil and someone else – for example, Carlos or Jannik. I’m very interested in what the result would be in that case.”
In Medvedev’s latest Major final, he was no match for Djokovic who downed him 6-3 7-6(5) 6-3. The Russian had chances in the second set, however, which lasted a staggering one hour and 45 minutes alone. And Cervara thought that set was significant one, although Djokovic made it too tricky to get back into the match.
- Support fearless journalism
- Read The Daily Express online, advert free
- Get super-fast page loading
Don’t miss…
Nadal hints early 2024 retirement after sharing sad thoughts from injury break[UPDATE]
Grand Slam super tour could ‘destroy’ tennis as ATP boss warns of ‘civil war'[REACTION]
Kyrgios joins OnlyFans before Aus Open as ‘disruptor’ explains ‘no-brainer’ move[QUOTES]
“The second set was key. Defeat broke Daniil, he lost energy, felt that he had lost his chances,” the 42-year-old said of the US Open final. “From the very beginning of the match until 3-3 in the second set, Daniil’s quality of shots suffered, something was missing.
“Perhaps there was not enough mental energy for creativity, but after 3-3 everything turned upside down, Medvedev played brilliantly. However, with Novak, at times it is not enough to play brilliantly, it is not enough to be the best version of yourself. With Djokovic you have to be even better than the best version of yourself.”
Source: Read Full Article