Daniil Medvedev Opens Up on His Biggest Unfinished Tennis Ambition

While he may be seen as a controversial figure by many, there is no denying that Daniil Medvedev has achieved quite a lot on the ATP circuit. He is a former World No. 1, has a Grand Slam title under his name, and has also won the coveted ATP Finals title. Despite having a dismal 2025 season, which saw him drop to No. 18 in the rankings at one stage, Medvedev has made it back to the ATP Finals this year. But even though the Russian is among the most successful players on the Tour, there is still one thing that he wants to tick off his bucket list.

When asked whether there is still something he wants to try in tennis, Medvedev first joked that he wants to hit a ‘tweener’ during a match. It is a shot where the player hits the ball from between the legs. The 30-year-old then remarked that he wants to improve his record at the Olympics and fight for medals.

“To make a tweener without any reason, like the ball flies to the centre and you do this,” he said, speaking to Bolshe. “But of course, at 40-30, on match point you wouldn’t do this, and at 40-0, well, it’s a little disrespectful to the opponent. In tennis, to be honest, I’ve seen everything. At the Olympics, I would like to perform better than I usually do. The quarter-finals happened once, but it’s clear that I want to fight for medals.”

Medvedev has competed in two Olympic Games so far, but the results have been mixed at best. He participated in both the singles and doubles draws at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. He reached the quarterfinals of the singles event before being eliminated by Pablo Carreno Busta and failed to record any doubles wins.

The 2024 Paris Olympics proved to be an even bigger disappointment for Medvedev. He wasn’t able to record any wins despite participating in the singles, doubles, and mixed doubles draws. He was knocked out by Felix Auger-Aliassime in the third round of the singles draw, and once again failed to win any matches in either of the doubles draws.

FLUSHING NY- AUGUST 30: Daniil Medvedev Vs Hugo Gaston during day 6 of the 2026 US Open at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center on August 30, 2026 in Flushing Queens. Copyright: xmpi04x Copyright: xIMAGO/MediaPunchx

Medvedev will be 32 by the time the 2028 LA Olympics arrive. He would want to improve his results in the upcoming edition of the Summer Games, as it could very well be his final appearance in the competition. While fighting for an Olympic medal remains one of his ambitions, the Russian’s current focus will only be on the upcoming ATP Finals.

Medvedev finished fifth in the race to the year-end tournament with 3,820 points. He has won four titles this season and has a solid win-loss record of 52-20. Though Medvedev has been among the best players on the Tour this year, he has a tough task ahead of him at the ATP Finals, as he finds himself in quite a tough group.

Daniil Medvedev has a mixed record against all the players in his group

Medvedev has been placed in the Ivan Lendl group alongside Carlos Alcaraz, Flavio Cobolli and Frances Tiafoe. The Russian has suffered losses in his previous meetings against each of the three players. On top of this, he arrives at the tournament after losing his opening match of the Paris Masters to Ignacio Buse.

Alcaraz is the player Medvedev might be worried about. The World No. 5 trails the Spaniard 7-3 in the H2H record and was defeated by him in the semifinals of the Vienna Open last month. Medvedev leads Cobolli by 2-1 in the H2H record, but was defeated by the Italian at the Madrid Open earlier this season.

A player Medvedev can be confident against is Tiafoe. The 30-year-old holds a 6-2 advantage in the H2H record and won the first five matches and defeated the American earlier this year at the Brisbane International. But Tiafoe got his revenge at the US Open, defeating Medvedev 7-6, 6-4, 7-6 in the Round of 16.

Furthermore, Medvedev has a win record of only 52% in his last six appearances at the ATP Finals. His previous appearance in the tournament came in 2024, when he was knocked out in the group stage after suffering defeats against Taylor Fritz and Jannik Sinner. Medvedev will be aiming to improve his record this season as he begins his campaign against local hero Flavio Cobolli on Monday, November 16.

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