Daniil Medvedev Splits With Gilles Simon After Unsuccessful Time Together
News
Former ATP world No. 1 Daniil Medvedev has decided to stop working with Gilles Simon after he failed to achieve great results since he joined the team.
Gilles Cervara has been Medvedev's primary coach since mid-2017. The French coach oversaw the 28-year-old's development into being a Grand Slam champion, multiple-time major finalist, and world No. 1.
However, Medvedev has endured a title drought since winning the Italian Open in May 2023, his sole clay-court title. No one expected his success in Rome to be followed by over twenty months without lifting an ATP trophy.
A few weeks after Medvedev lost the 2024 Australian Open final to Jannik Sinner despite leading by two sets, he appointed Simon to his team ahead of the 2024 Indian Wells Open to work alongside Gilles Cervara.
Simon reached a career-high of No. 6. Although he did not possess as much firepower or flair as others, the 2015 Wimbledon quarterfinalist was among the most innovative tacticians. He won many matches by outsmarting opponents with intelligent shot placement.
That made Simon's appointment understandable. Despite reaching two more Grand Slam finals and winning other titles since securing the 2021 US Open, it had been two-and-a-half years since Medevedev's sole major title, and he wanted to try something that might help change that.
Unfortunately, the partnership was not as successful as either man hoped. They did not win a title together, reached no Grand Slam finals, and their only Masters 1000 final was Simon's first event with Medvedev in Indian Wells.
The former ATP Finals champion acknowledged the underwhelming results when talking about Simon's departure in Rotterdam. However, Medvedev said there were no bad feelings and that he and Cervara had learned things from him.
"It honestly was a good experience. There were a lot of good things me and Gilles Cervara can take going forward. It just didn't work out exactly the way we wanted in terms of results. We didn't win a title or Grand Slam or something like this."
"But I learned a lot of new things about tennis and it gave me a new perspective about tennis and I'm sure it's going to help me in the future. We will see how it will work out for both of us. We remain with good feelings but we are not working together."
Although Medvedev has always been a unique and fiery character on the court, some of his antics in recent months were extreme, even by the world No. 7's standards. At the 2024 ATP Finals, he had a bizarre meltdown that included returning serve with his racket facing the wrong way.
Medvedev also received a significant fine at the 2025 Australian Open for various incidents, including several during his very surprising second-round defeat against the young American Learner Tien.
Those incidents may indicate Medvedev's frustration about going so long without a title and the partnership with Simon not working. However, he has remained loyal to Cervara despite those challenges and continues to believe his long-term coach is the right man for the job.
