ALMATY: After slipping to a concerning world No. 18 just last September—his lowest standing in seven years—Daniil Medvedev has orchestrated a masterful reclamation of his status among the tennis elite. As the top seed at the Almaty Open, the 30-year-old Russian enters the final stretch of the 2026 season not as a fading force, but as a surging contender looking to cement his place at the season-ending ATP Finals in Turin. Currently sitting back at No. 5, Medvedev’s return to form marks a testament to his resilience and his unique, often intense approach to the professional game.
The Art of the Comeback
Reflecting on his resurgence, Medvedev remains characteristically pragmatic about the fluctuations of the tour. “In tennis, there can be a lot of reasons, so I will not be able to tell you any one reason,” he remarked during a press conference in Almaty. “I’m happy that I managed to make a better year this year than last year. I enjoyed a lot of parts of this year, and, if I can be in Turin, that’s going to be a great bonus to having a good year.”
His climb back into the top five comes during a season defined by the health struggles of the game’s younger titans, Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz. With those two fixtures of the modern game dealing with various physical setbacks, the tour has seen a slight shift in momentum. Medvedev acknowledges the “opportunity” this creates, but he is quick to highlight the sustained excellence of his peers, particularly Alexander Zverev.
“Sasha (Zverev) had a tremendous year, super consistent,” Medvedev noted. “Even if you look at his matches in the last tournament in Shanghai, he probably was not playing his best level, but he still made the semis of a Masters 1000. That’s how strong he was this year.”
The “Crazy” Reality of Professional Tennis
Known as much for his tactical brilliance as for his volatile on-court persona, Medvedev has never shied away from the emotional toll of the sport. While he acknowledges his analytical nature, he is the first to admit that the adrenaline of competition often bypasses his calculated side.
“A lot of emotions and adrenaline come into play when you are trying to win; it changes your reaction to circumstances,” he explained. “As I like to say, we’re all a bit crazy. It’s just that when someone is crazy, he starts to scream, and when another is crazy, he maybe goes to the hotel room after and breaks everything there.”
When asked if a calmer demeanor might make him a better competitor, Medvedev offers a provocative counterpoint: his volatility is not a defect, but a diagnostic tool. “Whenever you see me calm on the court and I’m losing, it could be because I don’t care at that moment for many different reasons,” he admitted. “Most of the time, I want to win, that’s why I react the way I react. I have to be calmer sometimes, also to be able to overcome obstacles, but most of the time, I should be who I am.”
Grand Slam Ambitions for 2027
Looking toward the future, the former world No. 1 refuses to yield the stage to the younger generation despite their recent dominance. While he acknowledges that Sinner, Alcaraz, and Zverev are the current favorites for major titles, he remains firm in his own self-belief.
“I believe I can do much better than I did the last two years in Slams,” Medvedev said. “I know how to do it in general. I have experience of playing good in Slams. So it’s just about collecting the good things from the other tournaments, putting them in the Grand Slam week, and being able to do it for two weeks.”
Mentoring the Next Generation
Between his own tournament runs, Medvedev has taken an interest in the development of young talents like India’s 18-year-old Manas Dhamne. Currently ranked No. 393, Dhamne faces the same uphill climb that defines the early professional years for any aspiring player.
Medvedev emphasized that patience and incremental progress are the keys to avoiding the burnout that can come with early professional stagnation. “Once you drop in the rankings or stay at the same ranking, it can get a bit tough, especially when you’re a junior,” he observed. “So it’s always about a tiny bit of improvement. From what I see from him, he is [improving]. That’s the most important thing.”
The Russian pointed to the rapid rise of Spaniard Rafael Jodar—who vaulted from No. 165 to No. 11 in a single season—as a reminder that the trajectory of a tennis career is often non-linear. “If you asked me about Jodar last year, I would say, ‘great player,’ but you never know,” Medvedev said. “This is up to many, many things. Let’s see if [Dhamne] is able to do it.”
As the Almaty Open gets into full swing, all eyes are on the top seed. Whether or not his intensity leads him back to the winners’ circle in Turin, one thing is certain: Daniil Medvedev is not going anywhere, and he remains one of the most compelling, unfiltered figures in the sport.
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