DUBAI DUTY FREE TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS

March 1, 2024

Daniil Medvedev

Dubai Duty Free Tennis Stadium

Press Conference

U. HUMBERT/D. Medvedev

7-5, 6-3

THE MODERATOR: Questions.

Q. Can you talk a little bit about the match, what really went wrong for you.

DANIIL MEDVEDEV: Yeah, I think first of all, he played well. It was not a bad match. But as I said from the beginning of the tournament, except the match with Fokina, I was missing this 5% of something on the court. Would it be energy? Would it be practice? I didn't practice much after Australian Open. Could be just because some weeks in the year are like this.

I was missing this fire, I would say 5% of the fire. If I would miss it completely, I would lose first round and not be in semis.

Today against a very strong opponent who had this fire, I lost. Sometimes that's how tennis matches are. For example, if I remember last year, match against Novak, I played amazing, was on the confidence. I felt from him that he was missing something. I won 4-4, was happy.

Sometimes it happens to everyone. It happened to me this tournament. Hopefully I can turn it around next tournament.

Q. Obviously it was a frantic end to the match before you. I don't know if you were watching.

DANIIL MEDVEDEV: I was not. We followed it a little bit. I heard some whistles, then we saw the default. I have no idea what happened.

Q. How shocking was it?

DANIIL MEDVEDEV: First of all, I don't know what's happened. I know that Andrey can be a little bit like me, but in a different direction, can get mad. I will see. I don't know if it's ball boy, referee.

Q. You don't know at all?

DANIIL MEDVEDEV: No. Don't tell me. I better watch it. If you tell me... I don't know what happened exactly. Was shocking, but I didn't see it. When you don't see it, it's not that shocking also.

I will see it after the match and then I have my opinion.

Q. Did it throw you off? How did that play out for you?

DANIIL MEDVEDEV: I don't think it had an impact. 6-5, tiebreak, I was already warming up, so I was ready. As you say, it's a bit shocking to see disqualification. It doesn't matter if it's Andrey or somebody else. I feel sorry for sure for Andrey because he's my good friend.

I honestly don't think it had any effect on me. If it did, it's not good. When you play tennis, you have to be ready no matter what. I don't think it had any effect on me.

Q. Was the fact that you were defending the title adding to the pressure at all?

DANIIL MEDVEDEV: I don't think so. At the same time maybe we can start talking about it because I never managed to defend. I think it's more, as I said, for different reasons. I think like two or three I know them, one of them would be injury before the tournament. I didn't have much practice. Before the week when I came, I couldn't serve. The only day I could start to serve was the day before the tournament. As you saw, my serve was not my biggest weapon this tournament.

In a way I'm really happy I managed to make semis. I actually was not that far today from doing something. Cannot say from winning because I lost in two sets. But it was pretty close. All of this without big serve, to be honest. So it's good.

Yeah, I just hope that next weeks... I'm going to Indian Wells maybe tomorrow, the day after. I just hope I can bring more energy on the court and be a bit tougher, yeah.

Q. When you came out onto the court, did you see Andrey? Do you cross paths with somebody who just finished a match?

DANIIL MEDVEDEV: It depends the tournament. Here no because I think they go here in the press conference while we walk on the court.

Sometimes yes. If you're getting ready in the locker room, if the player comes in, yeah. Sometimes lose, having match points, you see him come in the locker room. That's not an amazing scene. At the same time you see this. I don't want to be in his position, I will try to win. In the other case, sometimes you're getting ready for the semifinal of a Grand Slam and the other guy who won comes in the locker room all pumped up. Well, I want to play him in the final, have the same feeling.

Again, I don't think it's a big deal. Depends the tournaments if you see them or not.

Q. Beyond the title defense thing, you've never won the same tournament twice, but you've won 20. How wild of a stat do you think that is? You're going to start running out of tournaments soon.

DANIIL MEDVEDEV: Yeah, yeah, I think it's pretty wild and I want to change it, to be honest. I want to change it. I want to try to win one. I hope I can do it because, yeah, this year I'm probably going to play some tournaments which I won already. I will just try to do better.

As I say, in the season there are so many different reasons, ups, downs. This tournament, if I would win it, I would call it a miracle for myself, a little bit like Rome tournament. I was not that far, four players left, even three. Yeah, didn't happen.

Getting ready for the next one.

Q. Do you put certain goals for yourself for the rest of the season or take it match by match?

DANIIL MEDVEDEV: It's different, again, reasons. Here I was taking it match by match because I was unfortunately maybe too much looking at my body. First match, how does it feel. Next day, next match, three sets, how do I feel. It was not that bad, but I was not free for 100%, especially on the serve. I couldn't just go for it. Hopefully this can change because Indian Wells is soon. It's not like I have one month to prepare. Hopefully I can go for it more.

When I'm free, I want to win every tournament I play. Here, I was in the beginning of the tournament not thinking too much about winning. I wanted to be healthy and play good. I managed to do it. For sure coming in today, you want to be in the final, you want to win. It didn't happen.

Again, I'm happy with the result, honestly, with the semifinal, with the way I felt, the body, but I'm disappointed with the energy I had because it was not the energy of a winner of the tournament, which I like to have, which I have had many times. That's why I managed to make many titles. That's why I'm disappointed.

That's not a big deal. I will have to change it the next tournaments.

Q. Can you clarify by 'energy', do you mean that figuratively or energy level?

DANIIL MEDVEDEV: I don't even know. It could be physical. It could be mental. Sometimes you need one break point. You're like, C'mon. You won the break, like in Australia, some matches against Zverev and Hurkacz in the fifth set, it was tough. As soon as I had the break, in my mind I'm like I'm not losing this match, I'm going to the end.

Here I didn't have it. As I say, the actual reason I don't know. I have a possibility that it was injury, whatever. But this has to change if I want to win next tournaments, if I want to be better.