Category: Jannik Sinner

Madrid Open: Are Nadal, Djokovic, Alcaraz and Raducanu playing?

April 20, 2024

The Madrid Open will feature the top stars from the ATP and WTA tours.

Carlos Alcaraz has won the men’s title the last two successive years and is bidding to become the first player to win three in a row.

The women’s trophy was won by Aryna Sabalenka as she beat Iga Swiatek in the final.

Who’s playing the Madrid Open this season? Are Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Alcaraz, Swiatek and Sabalenka playing? When is the draw?

When is the Madrid Open?

The WTA main draw at the Madrid Open starts on Tuesday, April 23 and the ATP main draw starts on Wednesday, April 24.

Play starts at 10am UK time every day until midway through the second week. From May 1 to May 3, play begins at midday UK time, and on finals weekend play starts at 2.30pm.

There are also night sessions running from April 26 to May 3 which start at 7pm.

The women’s final will be held on Saturday, May 4 and the men’s final will be on Sunday, May 5.

When is the Madrid Open draw?

The women’s singles draw will be held on Sunday, April 21 at 5pm UK time and the men’s draw will be on Monday, April 22.

Who is playing the Madrid Open?

The Madrid Open was set to be the first clay event that both Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal have played since the 2022 French Open – until Djokovic pulled out.

Djokovic has not given a reason for his withdrawal, but his absence means world No. 2 Jannik Sinner will be the top seed.

Nadal will be unseeded as he continues his comeback using a protected ranking.

Carlos Alcaraz’s status is unknown after he missed Monte Carlo and Barcelona due to an arm injury.

The world No. 3 is in Madrid ahead of the tournament, but said last week in Barcelona: “My goal is to try and go to the Madrid Open, but at the moment nothing is certain.

“I was given specific recovery times and I’ve respected them, but I haven’t felt good. I don’t want to get ahead of myself.”

Alcaraz hasn’t played since losing in the Miami Open quarter-finals.

Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka will headline the women’s draw.

The pair contested the final in Madrid last year and as the top two seeds could meet again with the trophy on the line.

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Aryna Sabalenka won Madrid in 2023

Image credit: Getty Images

Coco Gauff and Elena Rybakina will be among those looking to challenge for the title, while two-time champion Simona Halep and former runner-up Caroline Wozniacki have both got wildcards.

This will be Halep’s second tournament since returning to the tour after her doping ban was reduced from four years to nine months.

Naomi Osaka is also on the entry list but Emma Raducanu isn’t currently in the draw.

However, as she is not ranked high enough for entry, unless she gets a late wildcard she looks set to miss Madrid.

Djokovic set for Rome return

This is only the third time since 2015 that Djokovic has not won a title by this stage of the season.

The other two times were in 2022, when he was unable to play in Australia or the United States due to being unvaccinated for Covid-19, and 2018, when he had elbow surgery early in the year.

This season he had only played three tournaments before Monte Carlo, losing to Alex de Minaur at the United Cup, Jannik Sinner in the Australian Open semis, and then the upset in the third round at Indian Wells against lucky loser Luca Nardi.

It looks like he is next going to play the Italian Open, which starts on May 8, as he builds up for the French Open, Wimbledon and Olympics.

“I want to reach my peak for Paris – that’s where I want to play my best tennis,” said Djokovic in Monte Carlo.

“Anything else is a bonus, so let’s see what happens.”

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Madrid Open: Are Nadal, Djokovic, Alcaraz and Raducanu playing?

April 20, 2024

The Madrid Open will feature the top stars from the ATP and WTA tours.

Carlos Alcaraz has won the men’s title the last two successive years and is bidding to become the first player to win three in a row.

The women’s trophy was won by Aryna Sabalenka as she beat Iga Swiatek in the final.

Who’s playing the Madrid Open this season? Are Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Alcaraz, Swiatek and Sabalenka playing? When is the draw?

When is the Madrid Open?

The WTA main draw at the Madrid Open starts on Tuesday, April 23 and the ATP main draw starts on Wednesday, April 24.

Play starts at 10am UK time every day until midway through the second week. From May 1 to May 3, play begins at midday UK time, and on finals weekend play starts at 2.30pm.

There are also night sessions running from April 26 to May 3 which start at 7pm.

The women’s final will be held on Saturday, May 4 and the men’s final will be on Sunday, May 5.

When is the Madrid Open draw?

The women’s singles draw will be held on Sunday, April 21 at 5pm UK time and the men’s draw will be on Monday, April 22.

Who is playing the Madrid Open?

The Madrid Open was set to be the first clay event that both Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal have played since the 2022 French Open – until Djokovic pulled out.

Djokovic has not given a reason for his withdrawal, but his absence means world No. 2 Jannik Sinner will be the top seed.

Nadal will be unseeded as he continues his comeback using a protected ranking.

Carlos Alcaraz’s status is unknown after he missed Monte Carlo and Barcelona due to an arm injury.

The world No. 3 is in Madrid ahead of the tournament, but said last week in Barcelona: “My goal is to try and go to the Madrid Open, but at the moment nothing is certain.

“I was given specific recovery times and I’ve respected them, but I haven’t felt good. I don’t want to get ahead of myself.”

Alcaraz hasn’t played since losing in the Miami Open quarter-finals.

Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka will headline the women’s draw.

The pair contested the final in Madrid last year and as the top two seeds could meet again with the trophy on the line.

picture

Aryna Sabalenka won Madrid in 2023

Image credit: Getty Images

Coco Gauff and Elena Rybakina will be among those looking to challenge for the title, while two-time champion Simona Halep and former runner-up Caroline Wozniacki have both got wildcards.

This will be Halep’s second tournament since returning to the tour after her doping ban was reduced from four years to nine months.

Naomi Osaka is also on the entry list but Emma Raducanu isn’t currently in the draw.

However, as she is not ranked high enough for entry, unless she gets a late wildcard she looks set to miss Madrid.

Djokovic set for Rome return

This is only the third time since 2015 that Djokovic has not won a title by this stage of the season.

The other two times were in 2022, when he was unable to play in Australia or the United States due to being unvaccinated for Covid-19, and 2018, when he had elbow surgery early in the year.

This season he had only played three tournaments before Monte Carlo, losing to Alex de Minaur at the United Cup, Jannik Sinner in the Australian Open semis, and then the upset in the third round at Indian Wells against lucky loser Luca Nardi.

It looks like he is next going to play the Italian Open, which starts on May 8, as he builds up for the French Open, Wimbledon and Olympics.

“I want to reach my peak for Paris – that’s where I want to play my best tennis,” said Djokovic in Monte Carlo.

“Anything else is a bonus, so let’s see what happens.”

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‘Tough one to swallow’ – Sinner, Tsitsipas agree line call altered course of semi-final

April 14, 2024

Stefanos Tsitsipas admitted a controversial line call that went in his favour changed the outcome of his Monte Carlo Masters semi-final against Jannik Sinner.

However, it could have been Sinner who progressed.

With Tsitsipas serving at 3-1 down in the third set and facing a break point, a second serve was called in when replays showed it had gone long.

“It might have had a bigger influence to my opponent than it had on me,” admitted Tsitsipas afterwards.

“I think the match would have turned out completely different if that would have been called out. I will agree that it would have been pretty bad for me if that call was made. There are a lot of weird things on clay that we don’t see on other surfaces. One of them is the line calling and sometimes the marking.”

Sinner did not seem overly annoyed by the call at the time, but admitted afterwards that it lingered and said thinking about it caused him to cramp as Tsitsipas fought back into the match.

“It’s tough, a tough one to swallow, because I was playing at some point great tennis,” he said.

“Everyone can make mistakes unfortunately or fortunately. You know, also I can make mistakes. And it went like this.

“Then after, having cramps, it’s a consequence most likely of what happened because it also goes in the nervous side of the brain and then after, it’s not easy to play. I still tried to do the best I could.

“Stefanos raised the level, but when the momentum changes, it goes like this. This is the fun part of tennis.”

Tsitsipas will be bidding for his third Monte Carlo title when he faces Ruud in Sunday’s final.

The Greek has looked in excellent touch this week and against Sinner finished with seven aces and 27 winners.

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Djokovic v Ruud – Monte Carlo highlights

“It was one of the best first sets I have played on clay,” he said.

“So much consistency and great quality of shot-making. Just pure, clean game from start to finish. I was playing as equally good on the cross as I was playing on the down the line.

“It was a great feeling to be kind of in the zone right from the beginning.”

He is, though, wary of the danger posed by Tsitsipas.

“Stefanos is a fantastic player on all surfaces, but clay, I think he has had more success in his career so far. He won here two times, so obviously he’s feeling comfortable here,” Ruud said.

“The last six, seven, eight months has not been I think perfect for him, and he fell out of the top 10 and a few things… He’s been a steady top 10, top five player for many years already.

“He is always going to be a dangerous player and seems like he’s back in good shape. I’m going to have to expect the best version of Stefanos tomorrow.”

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‘Tennis at its highest level’ – Tsitsipas downs Sinner to reach another Monte-Carlo final

April 13, 2024

Stefanos Tsitsipas beat Jannik Sinner 6-4 3-6 6-4 in their semi-final on Saturday to reach his third Monte-Carlo Masters final in the last four years.

Tsitsipas took the first set 6-4 and the Greek was relying on a powerful serve much more than his opponent.

Sinner came into the encounter as the only Grand Slam winner of the year so far, with both players preparing for the next Slam, at Roland-Garros in Paris next month.

Tsitsipas has said he is keen to break back into the top 10 after an indifferent 2023, while for Sinner the task is to demonstrate that he is now one of the sport’s most consistent players.

The 22-year-old Italian hit back in the second set when he claimed it 6-3 to level at one set apiece to set up a decisive third.

Sinner then broke his rival and held his serve to move 4-2 clear in the third set, needing to hold his serve – and his nerve – to clinch a place in the final to play the winner of the day’s other semi-final, between world No. 1 Novak Djokovic and Casper Ruud.

Tsitsipas took Sinner to break point as he tried to get back to parity with the margin for error dwindling, but Sinner battled back to deuce three times before ultimately failing to hold on.

Buoyed by his resilience, Tsitsipas did not look back and forced through two games in quick succession to wrap up victory.

“It was tennis at its highest level that I have been able to play. Jannik was an extremely difficult opponent and it can be seen throughout the year so far. He has been very consistent and I could see that throughout today with his game,” Tsitsipas said after his win.

“He is one of the toughest opponents I have faced so far and to find ways when there weren’t that many, I am proud of that. He gave me a very difficult game and [the] way I overcame it is true excellence.”

The victory gives him the chance to earn his third title at the tournament after winning back in 2021 and 2022, and he now sits at No. 9 in the live rankings.

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Why Sinner-Rune rivalry could be one of the biggest in tennis over next decade

April 12, 2024

The fourth edition of a battle many believe will become a key rivalry in the hunt for major trophies over the next decade took place under the spotlight of the blazing Monte Carlo sun on Friday and was the headline match of this year’s quarter-finals.

The 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic may have raised an eyebrow at such a bold claim when he’s in town, but a mouthwatering showdown between two starlets on the cusp of superstardom, ‘is tennis’, according to the ATP’s campaign to promote its brand for 2024.

‘New season, new era, new attitude’ is its boast with the likes of Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner taking centre stage as its poster boys.

The fact Holger Rune – tipped to emerge alongside the other two as a multiple Grand Slam winner and as a member of the new ‘Big 3’ – is in the promo video but not on the main poster says much about the Dane’s mixed fortunes since exploding onto the scene by winning the Paris Masters as a teenager at the back end of 2022.

Rune, now 20, seemed to be on the verge of matching Alcaraz’s trophy-laden exploits when he put together an 18-5 record across six Masters 1000 tournaments from Paris 2022 through to Rome the following year.

The Scandinavian was the runner-up here in Monte Carlo and Rome and has also reached three Grand Slam quarter-finals, but there is no doubt the former world No. 4’s level in the second part of 2023 dropped significantly.

Instead, it was Sinner who embarked upon an unstoppable surge at the end of the year and carried it into 2024 with his maiden major title in Australia, leaving him as one of two young guns (along with Alcaraz) that currently look the most capable of stopping Djokovic’s recent monopoly of majors.

Indeed, talk of the new ‘Big 3’ has stalled somewhat, although there are signs Rune is finding his feet again after a reunion with Patrick Mouratoglou followed on from the short experiment with Boris Becker.

Despite the dip, Rune’s pedigree is clear to most within the sport and it is therefore felt it is only a matter of time until ‘the new Big 3’ starts trending on social media again.

This match between Rune and Sinner on Court Rainier III was the fourth edition in what the sport is desperate to see develop as a regular H2H meeting of new heroes of the men’s game at the business end of the biggest tournaments.

Two heavyweights hitting halcyon tennis heights with silverware on the line is what helped define the rivalries between the likes of Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer and the ATP are obviously very keen for that sort of gap to be filled in the years ahead when all three greats have finally hung up their racquets.

This was an intriguing tussle between Sinner’s power game and Rune’s variety. It also saw the hot-headed Dane – fittingly donning a fiery orange attire – at the centre of some disputes with the umpire and happily playing villain versus a large contingent of Italian supporters, seemingly feeding off their boos.

It juxtaposed perfectly with the ice-cool poker face of his opponent, wearing an understated black-green combination, and seemingly unwilling to get involved when the fireworks erupted on the other side of the net.

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‘We believe in ourselves’ – Sinner on rising to stardom with Alcaraz and Rune

The previous three encounters between the pair went the distance, so it was only fitting Rune saved two match points in the second set tie-break to push it to a third.

He threatened an upset briefly but in the end it was the in-form Sinner who edged a high-octane contest to delight the pro-Italian crowd and square the H2H at 2-2. The 22-year-old also avenged his defeat to the Dane on this very court at the semi-final stage last year.

The loss will see Rune drop out of the top 10 in the rankings for the first time since 2023 with a record of 15-8 for the year. It is a minor blow for the youngster, but this was a high-class showing from the Dane and he can take some positives from the example of Sinner and his recent change in fortune. The Italian ended 2022 on a 19-2 run (2-2 in finals) after going from a woeful 1-6 from January-February and 0-7 from June-July.

Sinner is now 25-1 for this calendar year and is only the third man in history to reach the last four of the first three Masters 1000 events of the year on multiple occasions (Indian Wells, Miami and Monte Carlo). Only Rafael Nadal (four times) and Novak Djokovic (three times) have previously achieved the feat more than once, with Sinner doing it in back-to-back years (2023 and now 2024).

The victory also ensures Sinner will remain at No. 2 in the world come Monday and keeps him on course for a potential blockbuster of a final with Djokovic, should the top two male players on the planet manage to navigate their respective semi finals.

For now, the Sinner-Rune rivalry is tied and ready to bubble along nicely, particularly if Rune has a resurgence. As a result, it isn’t A-list material just yet, but time tussling at the very top can change that with the contrast of styles and personalities as well as undoubted talent and desire to succeed at both ends of the net making future battles almost certain to live up to the hype.

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Tsitsipas downs Khachanov to set up semi-final with Sinner or Rune

April 12, 2024

Stefanos Tsitsipas continued his winning run at the Monte-Carlo Masters with a 6-4 6-2 quarter-final victory over Karen Khachanov.

The Greek world No. 12 is hoping to crack the top 10 once more, and he is now in the semi-finals in Monaco as he looks to add more points for his ATP ranking.

Tsitsipas needed 83 minutes for his straight-sets victory against the Russian as he held off the big-hitting No. 17.

He has both the 2021 and 2022 titles to his name, but the 25-year-old suffered a drop-off in form over the last season, and he will now face the winner of another quarter-final tie, where Jannik Sinner takes on Holger Rune.

“I would lie if I said it doesn’t bring good memories stepping out on this court,” Tsitsipas said after the win.

“It’s something that I attribute some of my performances here over time to.

“I come back here, and I sort of relive those memories of the past. It gives good feelings to me when I’m able to play in front of crowds like this and be able to try and strive for excellence with my game.”

Tsitsipas started well with a confidence-boosting break in the very first game, and while he was immediately broken back, he continued to use his serve to keep his opponent on the back foot.

When receiving serve he was more effective than Khachanov – who needed the physio at 2-2 in the second – who started to make more errors.

Tsitsipas added: “My returns were effective. I was generating a lot of pace and gained good momentum at some point.

“He seemed good and well composed in his tennis. He wasn’t giving away too many unforced errors and seemed pretty calm from behind the baseline.

“I tried to do my part, which was to press as much as I could and not rush myself into the rallies.

“I was trying to predict and read certain things on the court and it worked out pretty well. I took my time once again to understand what works and what doesn’t and today I was persistent in my efforts to walk away with something good.”

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‘Very happy’ Sinner sweeps past Korda in Monte Carlo, Rublev upset by Popyrin

April 10, 2024

Jannik Sinner continued his dominant form with a convincing win over Sebastian Korda in his first clay match of the season in Monte Carlo.

The world No. 2 has only lost once this season and proved too strong and precise for Korda as he won 6-1 6-2.

Speaking afterwards, Sinner said: “I moved quite well, every year it’s quite tough to come here and try to perform well. I am very happy with the performance.

“It’s always great to be back here, the atmosphere is amazing, so it’s good.”

Sinner said ahead of his opening match in Monte Carlo that his expectations were not too high as he started the switch of surfaces, but he looked just as good on clay as he has done on hard courts so far this season.

He broke in the opening game of the match and then fended off three break points to open up a 2-0 lead.

Another break saw Sinner move 4-1 ahead and he closed out the set in style, chasing down a drop shot and flicking away a winner before drilling a forehand into the corner on the next point.

Sinner continued to fire early in the second set and forced Korda to dig deep to hold his opening service game.

But the resistance didn’t continue as a mishit forehand saw Sinner break for a 3-1 lead.

There was no coming back from there for Korda, who continued to make too many unforced errors as Sinner closed out the win.

Defending champion Andrey Rublev was upset in his opening match by world No. 46 Alexei Popyrin.

The Australian hit 25 winners to earn the sixth top-10 win of his career as he prevailed 6-4 6-4.

“I enjoyed coming out on centre court for the first time. First tournament on clay of the year and I have good memories from clay last year,” said Popyrin.

“I am feeling really comfortable on it and happy to beat a guy who was in form, confident and the defending champ. It was an awesome match.”

Popyrin will next play fellow Australian Alex De Minaur, who beat Tallon Griekspoor 2-6 6-2 6-3.

Italian lucky loser Lorenzo Sonego saw off Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-4 7-5 and two-time champion Stefanos Tsitsipas beat Tomas Martin Etcheverry 6-1 6-0.

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‘Older and slower’ – Leconte thinks Djokovic will struggle to match Alcaraz and Sinner

April 9, 2024

Former world No. 5 Henri Leconte has weighed in on the situation at the top of the men’s game, where 36-year-old Novak Djokovic is trying to reassert his dominance having failed to win a tournament so far this year.

Djokovic opens his campaign in Monte-Carlo on Tuesday against Roman Safiullin, as he bids to add a third Monaco title to his collection. It will be his first match on clay of the year, and his first of any kind since he .

But with Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner in attendance, on top form and brimming full of confidence, Djokovic has his work cut out this week.

“The ‘Next Gen’ has dominated since last year, but they must prove that they can remain at the highest level,” Leconte told Monaco Matin ahead of the tournament.

“Sinner wins and confirms with his exceptional start to the season. There’s still Novak, but he’s older and he’s slower. He lost a little liveliness.

“Young people are less afraid because they feel that it is crumbly. Slowly, everything changes.”

Leconte knows a thing or two about playing well on clay, having reached the final at Roland-Garros back in 1988, losing to Eurosport’s own Mats Wilander.

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Henri Leconte à Roland-Garros

Image credit: Getty Images

Djokovic has made no secret of his desire to do well on the clay this year, with the Olympics set to be played on the red-dirt courts of Roland-Garros.

A strong run on clay before the grass-court season would be the perfect build up to that Olympic campaign, with a gold medal one of the very few things missing from Djokovic’s trophy cabinet.

But as Leconte alluded to, time waits for no man. Djokovic will turn 37 next month, and he has his work cut against a younger generation who know they can beat him on the biggest of stages. Alcaraz did so at Wimbledon last year, Sinner in Melbourne.

And with the likes of Daniil Medvedev playing some good tennis, Alexander Zverev coming back to his best form after his lengthy injury layoff and Holger Rune only likely to improve, Djokovic has his hands full this season when it comes to taking home those trophies.

But first he must make his way past Safiullin. The two have played once before, Djokovic winning in straight sets in Tel Aviv in 2022. They have never met on clay though, so it could be a tricky opening for the world No. 1, especially as he is currently without a full-time coach, having parted ways with Goran Ivanisevic last month after six years together.

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Exclusive: Medvedev reveals ‘higher expectations’ on clay as he targets strong French Open

April 8, 2024

Daniil Medvedev has told Eurosport that he has “higher and higher expectations” on clay as he targets success at the French Open, the upcoming second Grand Slam of the year.

The 28-year-old Russian has a glittering palmares in the sport, with a US Open title to his name as well as making five other Grand Slam finals, winning the ATP Finals in 2020, and spending time as world No. 1.

However, Roland-Garros represents something of an anomaly on his record, having only got past the first round twice in seven attempts, with his best showing coming in 2021 when he reached the quarter-finals.

“I’m either way getting there step by step [on clay], Medvedev told Eurosport.

“I made quarters three years ago [at the French Open] playing actually some really good tennis, in my opinion. I won Rome last year.

“I still don’t like clay too much, just because my game doesn’t suit it perfectly.

“It’s much tougher for me to adapt to different circumstances, either bad bounces or a guy that has a good kick-serve and stuff like this.

“So a lot of small details I have to take care of, which I managed to do last year and some years before in Roland-Garros.

“So I actually have in a way higher and higher expectations for clay every year than before, which can sometimes be tricky but at the same time I like high expectations because when you have high expectations, it means you have the confidence.

“Sometimes you can lose and lose this confidence, but sometimes it can actually bring you higher.

“So I’m really looking forward to Roland-Garros. I feel like lately I managed to find a small edge at Grand Slams and play well starting from Wimbledon in 2023.

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Medvedev v Seyboth Wild – French Open highlights

“So I’m going to try to use it and try to have a good French Open this year.”

‘Jannik didn’t get tired’

That was Medvedev’s second successive loss to Sinner, after the Italian memorably came back from two sets down to win the Australian Open final back in January to claim his first major title.

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Watch: Top 5 points from Sinner and Medvedev’s Australian Open final epic

Medvedev opened up on how he reflected on that loss, and what he learned from it.

“I look back on it with experience, on the whole tournament,” he said. “On the final, to be honest – and I talked to all my team and we discussed it really well – not much I have to say.

“Good comeback from Jannik, tactically he changed just small things here and there. He managed to, let’s say, get me off the floor.

“The guys I played before physically they got tired, and I could use it. Jannik didn’t really get tired, didn’t really get too tight.

“So congrats to him, unfortunately for me. But I think, first of all, I’m able to do crazy things with the amount of hours I played on the court and to win crazy matches.

“But an experience for next time that maybe I can try to change my game here and there to try to make the matches faster, make the points faster.

“And if I manage to be in the final [again], arrive there fresher.”

Medvedev begins his Monte Carlo campaign on Tuesday with a clash against either Gael Monfils or Jordan Thompson.

Stream and watch the 2024 French Open live between May 26 and June 9 on discovery+ and Eurosport

Exclusive: Medvedev reveals ‘higher expectations’ on clay as he seeks to improve French Open record

April 8, 2024

Daniil Medvedev has told Eurosport that he has “higher and higher expectations” on clay as he targets success at the French Open, the upcoming second Grand Slam of the year.

The 28-year-old Russian has a glittering palmares in the sport, with a US Open title to his name as well as making five other Grand Slam finals, winning the ATP Finals in 2020, and spending time as world No. 1.

However, Roland-Garros represents something of an anomaly on his record, having only got past the first round twice in seven attempts, with his best showing coming in 2021 when he reached the quarter-finals.

“I’m either way getting there step by step [on clay], Medvedev told Eurosport.

“I made quarters three years ago [at the French Open] playing actually some really good tennis, in my opinion. I won Rome last year.

“I still don’t like clay too much, just because my game doesn’t suit it perfectly.

“It’s much tougher for me to adapt to different circumstances, either bad bounces or a guy that has a good kick-serve and stuff like this.

“So a lot of small details I have to take care of, which I managed to do last year and some years before in Roland-Garros.

“So I actually have in a way higher and higher expectations for clay every year than before, which can sometimes be tricky but at the same time I like high expectations because when you have high expectations, it means you have the confidence.

“Sometimes you can lose and lose this confidence, but sometimes it can actually bring you higher.

“So I’m really looking forward to Roland-Garros. I feel like lately I managed to find a small edge at Grand Slams and play well starting from Wimbledon in 2023.

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Medvedev v Seyboth Wild – French Open highlights

“So I’m going to try to use it and try to have a good French Open this year.”

‘Jannik didn’t get tired’

That was Medvedev’s second successive loss to Sinner, after the Italian memorably came back from two sets down to win the Australian Open final back in January to claim his first major title.

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Watch: Top 5 points from Sinner and Medvedev’s Australian Open final epic

Medvedev opened up on how he reflected on that loss, and what he learned from it.

“I look back on it with experience, on the whole tournament,” he said. “On the final, to be honest – and I talked to all my team and we discussed it really well – not much I have to say.

“Good comeback from Jannik, tactically he changed just small things here and there. He managed to, let’s say, get me off the floor.

“The guys I played before physically they got tired, and I could use it. Jannik didn’t really get tired, didn’t really get too tight.

“So congrats to him, unfortunately for me. But I think, first of all, I’m able to do crazy things with the amount of hours I played on the court and to win crazy matches.

“But an experience for next time that maybe I can try to change my game here and there to try to make the matches faster, make the points faster.

“And if I manage to be in the final [again], arrive there fresher.”

Medvedev begins his Monte Carlo campaign on Tuesday with a clash against either Gael Monfils or Jordan Thompson.

Stream and watch the 2024 French Open live between May 26 and June 9 on discovery+ and Eurosport