Medvedev has been winning titles every year since 2018 but he has yet to win the same tournament twice.
Daniil Medvedev acknowledges it is “very strange” that he has 20 titles in his collection without ever winning the same tournament twice but adds that he is just looking at it as “an unlucky thing” and nothing more than that since he enters every tournament determined to win it all.
Since becoming an ATP champion at an ATP 250 tournament in Sydney in 2018, 28-year-old Medvedev has won 19 more titles. And Medvedev has won titles on every level – the ATP 250, ATP 500, Masters, Grand Slam, ATP Finals.
While Medvedev has been one of the most accomplished ATP players over the last several years and has won at least two titles every year since 2018, he just hasn’t been able to lift title more than once at the same tournament.
In some tournaments – like the US Open where he is a three-time finalist but has one title – Medvedev has been able to make multiple times but just hasn’t managed to win it twice.
This week in Rome, Medvedev is hoping to win the Rome Masters and finally put an end to his “strange stat.” On Saturday, Medvedev – who had a first-round bye in Rome – defeated Jack Draper 7-5 6-4 to progress into the third round at Foro Italico and set up a third-round meeting against Hamad Medjedovic.
Medvedev on never winning one tournament twice
Last year in Rome, Medvedev did something for the first time in his career when he won his first clay title came at Foro Italico. This year, Medvedev is hoping to defend his Rome title and repeat as champion at one tournament for the first time in his career.
“It’s very strange. I would think it’s like coincidence, unlucky thing. I don’t care which tournament I play, I want to win. Doesn’t matter whether I win it before or not. Every tournament I play, I want to win. I really hope that one time in my career I can win somewhere I win before. Now is the chance here to do it, and I will try,” Medvedev said of never winning one tournament twice.
“About clay? I like it more now regarding the game. Again, when someone asks me what’s the thing you really hate about clay, for me it’s dirty. I don’t like. Locker rooms are dirty. When you come, you clap the shoes to get out the clay. It’s dirty. Socks, you can throw away after clay season, for sure. In your car after practice, it’s dirty. So I don’t like it. It is what it is. Now I enjoy it more and more.”
Medvedev on Dominic Thiem announcing retirement
On Friday, 2020 US Open champion and former world No. 3 Thiem announced his career would be coming to an end later this year. After struggling with injuries over the last few years and failing to rediscover his old game after a serious wrist injury sustained in mid-2021, 30-year-old Thiem – now ranked at No. 117 in the world – has decided to walk away from pro tennis.
For Medvedev – who is just two years younger than Thiem – it was a sad news to hear the Austrian basically being forced to retire because his wrist didn’t allow him to again be the same player he once was.
“Yeah, I would say that it’s a little tough to see someone like Dominic retire because maybe he’s younger than some other players that retired. I’m not in his body, in his mind, to know exactly the wrist and everything,” Medvedev said of Thiem retiring later this year.
Against Thiem, Medvedev has a 3-3 head-to-head record. Some of their biggest encounters came in the 2020 US Open semifinal, when Thiem defeated Medvedev 6-2 7-6 (7) 7-6 (5) en route to winning the title. Later that year, Medvedev beat Thiem 4-6 7-6 (2) 6-4 in the ATP Finals final for his first title at the prestigious season-ending tournament.
“We had some I felt unbelievable moments. Me personally, the most I remember is the US Open semifinal and the final in London of the ATP Masters. At the US Open I felt like I was playing good, in a good run, semifinal. He beat me. I was surprised with the way he played, surprised in a way where he played very good, very strong,” Medvedev recalled.