Daniil Medvedev responded to Andrey Rublev’s remarks that he strategically grinds down his opponents after their 2023 ATP Finals match.
After winning his opening match 6-4, 6-2 against Rublev, Medvedev took the lead in the Red Group rankings. With a superb performance, the Russian defeated all seven break points to increase his record against Rublevto 7-2.
Rublev gave an insight into the different ways that Daniil Medvedev and Carlos Alcaraz played before their match. The 26-year-old claimed that although the Spaniard quickly eliminated his opponents, Medvedev methodically destroyed them while enjoying himself.
Rublev said: “He’s like when someone kills you slowly, you know and you feel that you are dying. If Alcaraz kills you fast and sometimes you don’t notice, Medvedev is killing you slowly. He’s over there, taking his time, enjoying the moment, and you feel like you are dying little by little, you know.”
In response to Rublev’s observation, Medvedev spoke during his on-court interview. The 27-year-old made it clear that while he didn’t use this strategy against every opponent, he was forced to due to the Russian’s style of play.
Medvedev replied: “Well, the thing is, not everyone. I like to play aggressively on my serve or the first shot after the return. But Rublev plays such a style that he doesn’t leave me any other option because I don’t have the power of Alcaraz or maybe even Tsitsipas, like on my forehand. So it’s a little bit of a different style where I try to, you know, go left and right and use my opponent.”
He added: “He’s very good at this game so what happens is we’re both good at this game and as you could see in the first set, we have to run, run, run, run, run! So that’s not the case against everyone but against him, that’s the only chance I have.”
Daniil Medvedev after beating Andrey Rublev at ATP Finals
“Andrey said before the match ‘Medvedev kills you slowly.’ Is that how you do it?”
Daniil: “I like to play aggressive on my serve or the first shot after the return. But Rublev plays such a style that he doesn’t give me… pic.twitter.com/1uVq6xxSvN
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) November 13, 2023
Andrey Rublev on what it feels like to play Daniil Medvedev:
“If Alcaraz kills you fast, Medvedev kills you slowly. Taking his time, enjoying the moment. You feel that you’re dying little by little” 😂
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) November 13, 2023
Daniil Medvedev in 2023
Ranked no.3, Medvedev played his last match on the 13th of November when he beat world no.5 Andrey Rublev 6-4 6-2 in the round robin in the Nitto ATP Finals (draw).
This season the Russian has achieved a 65-16 win-loss record. Daniil conquered 5 titles in 2023 in Rotterdam, Doha, Dubai, Miami and Rome. Medvedev reached the final in Indian Wells, U.S. Open, Beijing and Vienna.
Andrey Rublev in 2023
Currently the world no.5 (career-high), the Russian played his last match on the 13th of November when he was overcome by world no.3 Daniil Medvedev 6-4 6-2 in the round robin in the Nitto ATP Finals (draw).
This season Rublev has managed to achieve a 56-24 match record. Rublev has won 2 titles in 2023 in Monte-Carlo and Bastad. Rublev was the runner-up in Dubai, Banja Luka, Halle and Shanghai.
Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev played each other 10 times. The head to head is 8-2 for Medvedev. Before, the last time they competed against each other, Daniil Medvedev won 6-4 6-2 in the round robin in Turin (Nitto ATP Finals) on the 13th of November 2023.
You can see them in action in the following highlights.
