Follow us on Google Discover Daniil Medvedev was unable to continue his run at the Shanghai Masters after losing to Arthur Rinderknech in the semifinals.
Medvedev split with his long-term coach after losing in the first round of the US Open, and has since been working with former Australian Open champion Thomas Johansson.
This appears to have made a difference to the former world number one, with Medvedev beating Alex de Minaur, Learner Tien and Alejandro Davidovich Fokina to reach the last-four in Shanghai.
However, Medvedev was unable to continue this run, with Rinderknech setting up a Shanghai final with Valentin Vacherot in a family affair.
Photo by Qian Jun/MB Media/Getty ImagesDaniil Medvedev suggests if he thinks he is back to his previous form
Medvedev is a former US Open champion and has been the world number one, but he has not won a single title since the Italian Open in May 2023.
This has caused him to fall to world number 18, which is Medvedev’s lowest ranking since 2019.
However, after reaching the semifinals in Shanghai, Medvedev is set to climb four places back up the ATP rankings again.
When reflecting on his defeat to Rinderknech in an interview with Russian outlet Tennis Bolshoi, Medvedev was asked if he now thinks he is back.
While Medvedev admitted that this was a good step in the right direction, he suggested that he needs more to be feeling like that.
“Not quite, because in order for this feeling to exist, I know that I am capable of more,” answered Medvedev. “And even in this season, which is very bad, this was not the first Masters semifinal.
“If I could reach the final and, of course, win then such a feeling might exist. But it’s still positive, step by step I will try to improve my game and try to play even better.”
Daniil Medvedev explains why he was going for such big second serves vs Arthur Rinderknech
Medvedev lost to Rinderknech, 4-6 6-2 6-4, in a closely fought contest which saw a very interesting tactic used in the last game of the match.
In the deciding set, Medvedev was serving to stay in the match and was under a lot of pressure to do so, with Rinderknech really going for the returns.
As a result of the stakes on the line, many players would be cautious on their second serves, but that was not the case for Medvedev.
These brave second serve options had mixed fortunes, with Medvedev able to save one match point with it, while affording a costly double fault to give Rinderknech the match on the other.
When asked about this, Medvedev explained the thought process behind it, “Yeah, he had important moments today, let’s say he hit the ball well and hit the target.
“So I felt that if I served a normal second serve, I think he was already on match point with the courage. He would have slapped and most likely hit. So I decided that I would rather take the risk. It worked once, but not the second time.”
There is little time for Medvedev to now reflect on this defeat, as he is set to play the ATP 250 event in Almaty, Kazakhstan next week.
The draw for this tournament has already taken place, and Medvedev will play either Adam Walton or Tristan Schoolkate in his opening match after receiving a bye to the second round as the second seed.