Daniil Medvedev picks between winning a Grand Slam and becoming world No 1
Former world No 1 Daniil Medvedev believes being “super good” and “super consistent” are key to topping the ATP Rankings, but he also feels the “ranking is always secondary”.
Medvedev spent a total of 16 weeks at No 1 in 2022 with his rise to the top coming on the back of winning the 2021 US Open and finishing runner-up at the 2022 Australian Open.
But he has slipped down the list in recent years and currently sits at No 9 with not too many people believing he will return to the top with the likes of Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz dominating the No 1 ranking since June 2024.
Sinner currently has a 3,990 lead over Alcaraz, who in turn has a 2,270-point advantage over third-placed Alexander Zverev.
However, French Open champion Zverev could overtake Alcaraz -who remains out with a wrist injury – after Wimbledon if he reaches the final while he can also close the gap to Sinner if the Italian loses early.
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Medvedev, meanwhile, is 9,870 points behind Sinner, but when asked if he feels becoming world No 1 is still possible, he replied: “First of all, it’s possible for literally everyone. You just need to play super good, super consistent, et cetera.
“Me, same. I know if I manage to do the right things and maybe be better in couple of components, meaning play like in Rome and Roland Garros and don’t lose first rounds, stuff like this, you can get more points, because at one point I think I was second in the race, now I’m not.
“I don’t know how far is Sascha off Jannik. I think he was pretty far at one point, but now probably cut back after Roland Garros.
“So it’s possible for everyone. You just need to be super consistent, super strong, win a lot of matches. Of course, for example, if you ask me at this moment, I’m far from these guys in the points, but in the same time, this is sport, and everything is possible.
“For me, motivation is to try to play my best, maybe win here, and then you get 2,000 points. Then rankings is always secondary, because it comes with good results.”
And the follow-up question focused on that “secondary” comment as Medvedev went into more detail about the all-important goal.
“I think Grand Slam is a higher achievement. Once you win a Grand Slam in a year, you already pretend to be world No 1,” he said. “Of course, there are other three Grand Slams. If it’s another guy’s winning it, maybe they’re going to be the No. 1.
But 2,000 points is a lot, and probably if you won a Grand Slam, probably you will play good in other tournaments, as well. That’s what happened for me, for example.
“The year I won US Open, I stayed No 1, keeping these points in my pocket, because I think I got No 1, like, not exactly after Australian Open, but close to it. And then I kind of stayed No. 1 till the US Open. Then I lost I think fourth round to [Nick] Kyrgios, dropped the points, and then I was not world No 1.
“For me, yes, ranking is secondary, but it shows how well you have been playing for the last 52 weeks, and it’s a big achievement if you manage to play better than all the other guys in the world in these last 52 weeks.”
