Ahead of the 2022 Moselle Open in Metz, Daniil Medvedev spoke about the world number 1 spot in the ATP Rankings that was discussed a lot lately.
Only a few months ago, Daniil Medvedev became the first player since 2003 that wasn't named Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic or Andy Murray to reach the top spot in the ATP Rankings and now, 19-years-old Carlos Alcaraz broke the record for the youngest player to ever reach the no. 1 spot. The Russian therefore praised his rival and also spoke about how he feels about the time he spent as world no. 1.
“He's the youngest world No. 1 ever, and it says a lot because we had quite a few great champions in tennis' history,” said Medvedev about Carlos Alcaraz. “What he's done since the beginning of his career is just completely insane. It's ridiculous. The guy is 19. His tennis level is insane and he knows it."
“During the summer, it seemed he was a little bit in trouble. Lost some matches against [Cameron] Norrie or [Tommy] Paul, he had some tough moments. But then in Flushing Meadows, I mean, the guy plays five-set matches, finishes at 3am, recovers, wins the trophy and becomes No. 1. Congrats to Carlos. I like him a lot. Nice guy, we often speak together. I did not have the opportunity to congratulate him in person but I will do it soon.”
Then, the Russian also spoke about his climb up the rankings to world number one spot. Something, that started as a dream soon turned into reality for Daniil Medvedev as it wasn't Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer or Andy Murray, who was the first player in the world for the first time in almost 20 years.
“Being world No. 1, it was a dream, more than an ambition,” explained Medvedev. “Until I was 22 or 23, I never thought about the No. 1 spot. I saw those guys, Roger, Rafa, Novak, and told myself, ‘This is not for me’. When you reach the top five, then you start thinking of it and, of course, when I won my first Grand Slam in New York, I was not so far from Novak."
“I was closing the gap so it became a real possibility and a goal to reach. Being No. 1 is like winning a Grand Slam. It's something you've done, and nobody can take it away from you. I won the US Open, the trophy is in my house, and it will remain there forever, except if someone steals it!"
"Same thing for No. 1. I managed to do it and it's a reality forever. But once you did that, you constantly have to put this behind you and start thinking about what's next. Everything goes so fast in tennis.”
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