We knew it since Thursday, after the defeat of Novak Djokovic in the quarter-finals of the Dubai tournament. Nevertheless: it’s still weird, Monday, February 28, to see a new name at the top of the ATP rankings. For 18 years, we had lost the habit. Daniil Medvedev becomes the new boss of world tennis. If he owes it in part to the forced withdrawal of his predecessor, the Russian is not a cheap number one.
Slow and rolling, the rise of Emperor Medvedev has continued inexorably for several months. It began in August with the victory of the Russian over Novak Djokovic in the final of the US Open. It was confirmed with its place of finalist against Rafael Nadal in Melbourne, after an unforgettable meeting. It therefore ended with the collapse of Djokovic in Dubai when, at the same time, his successor was released in Acapulco by a certain Nadal. This transfer of power therefore puts an end to the hegemony of the Federer-Nadal-Djokovic trio. Apart from the brief foray of putschist Andy Murray in 2016, their reign had lasted since February 2004.
The arrival of a new crowned head at the top of the hierarchy should delight those who were tired of the takeover bid of the trio in this sport. However, the cries are long overdue. The world political situation, which involves the country of Medvedev’s birth, surely does not help. But even before that, the personality of the new king did not seem to be among those that lead to popular plebiscite. It must be said that Daniil Medvedev does nothing to secure favors. The public is against him? He feeds on it. He believes that the father of Stefanos Tsitsipas is coaching during their semi-final, at the last Australian Open? He yells at the referee, forgetting at the same time the most basic respect.
Daniil Medvedev is like that. Rough formwork. To like it or not does not concern him. He already has enough to do with his own demons to take care of what people will say. It would undoubtedly please Michel Houellebecq. Like the heroes of the author of The possibility of an islandthe Russian possesses this disillusioned nonchalance and this sense of provocation which allow him to face adversity.
However, this explosive character has long slowed the flight of the Russian rocket. Like his compatriot Marat Safin before him, Medvedev has too often allowed himself to be overwhelmed by his emotions, by his frustration.
“Look at me when I talk to you!”
Medvedev gets angry with the referee, accusing him of not sanctioning the exchanges between Tsitsipas and his father. Crazy ! #AusOpen #HomeOfTennis pic.twitter.com/ZRHmJ4fTV5
— Eurosport France (@Eurosport_FR) January 28, 2022
The Tsar’s problem was never about tennis. Apart from a volley worthy of the name, the 26-year-old has everything going for him, despite the physique of a lanky tall stake that is sometimes misleading. “The depth of Daniil’s shots reminds me of Novak Djokovic” explained Patrick Mouratoglou, coach of Serena Williams, during the Melbourne final. Like the Serb, he has this elasticity that allows him to cover every corner of the field, and a sickening regularity in the exchange. If we want to enlarge the line, Medvedev is Djokovic with a first ball at 210 km / h. Scary for the competition, no?
Unlike Djokovic who has been fighting for more than a decade with Nadal and Federer, it is difficult to see, at present, who can oppose the new czar among the players of the new generation. Tsitsipas and Zverev, his two closest and most consistent rivals, are for the moment a tone below. Rest Djokovic, of course. But the presence of the Serb in the next Grand Slam tournaments remains uncertain due to his refusal to be vaccinated against Covid-19.
If the men are lacking, perhaps the hostile grounds will oppose a long-term lease? So far, clay and grass have regularly slipped under the Muscovite’s feet. With hard work, of course, nothing seems impossible.
However, there is another aspect that the new world number one must improve if he wants to reign in the long term: the killer instinct, another trademark of the Federer-Nadal-Djokovic trio. After his failure in Australia, Medvedev now has 13 won tournaments but also ten defeats in the final, a ratio unworthy of a future giant of the game, but which, again, he can erase over time. After all, Ivan Lendl, at the top of the ATP rankings for 270 weeks throughout his career, had lost his first four Grand Slam finals.
It remains to be seen how the Russian will approach tournaments in his new leadership role. Medvedev’s future will depend on his ability to handle pressure and this status. Sometimes the Russian still seems on the verge of implosion, victim of an internal storm under a skull. As he said himself, targeting some troublemakers among the public at Bercy last year, “it’s easier to enjoy life when you don’t have a brain”. A phrase that Houellebecq would not have denied.