‘I want to try and challenge Rafael Nadal on the clay’: Daniil Medvedev

‘I want to try and challenge Rafael Nadal on the clay’: Daniil Medvedev

Rafael Nadal and Daniil Medvedev

World No.2 Daniil Medvedev has been one of the most consistent players on the ATP tour over the past few years. The Russian might have not won a Grand Slam yet, but he has already started accumulating titles on the ATP tours at regular intervals.

From being a mere challenger to a genuine contender, Medvedev’s progress has been impressive. With two Grand Slam finals and four Masters 1000 titles, the Russian is already approach the very top of men’s tennis- World No.1 ranking.

While much of his success has come on the hard courts, his ability to create a huge impact on the clay courts have often been the talking point in his career. In fact, during the recently concluded clay season, Medvedev even opined on how he hates playing on the surface.

That said, much to the surprise of all, he expressed his desire to take on the King of Clay on the dirt in the future. The 20-time Grand Slam champion has won 13 Grand Slams alone on the clay at Roland Garros, and is historically the greatest ever player on clay.

“I would like to play Rafa at one of the clay-court tournaments. I want the challenge that is almost impossible to make, but there are people who made it — people of my age — so I want to try,” Medvedev told the ATP website.

Interestingly, Nadal and Medvedev have met four times on the tour, with the Spaniard leading 3-1. However, the two have never crossed paths on the dirt.

Medvedev aims for title No.2 in Cincinnati

Daniil Medvedev
Daniil Medvedev

Meanwhile, the former US Open finalist is fresh from an ATP 1000 title win at the recently concluded Toronto Masters and will now take shift his focus towards the ongoing Cincinnati Masters.

The Russian has an impressive 21-3 win/loss record on the hard courts till now in 2021 and will be one of the top contenders to win the upcoming US Open in a few weeks.

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