ROLAND GARROS

May 27, 2025

Daniil Medvedev

Press Conference

C. NORRIE/D. Medvedev

7-5, 6-3, 4-6, 1-6, 7-5

THE MODERATOR: Daniil, bad luck. You came back from two sets to love, and that break in the fifth. What do you think made the difference in the end?

DANIIL MEDVEDEV: That I didn't manage to serve it out. I mean, kind of close match. Great fight. Disappointed to lose. He played well. I didn't play good enough. So that's why I lost.

THE MODERATOR: Questions in English.

Q. For the Australian Open, same situation with Learner Tien. You lost serving for the match. Tough fifth sets?

DANIIL MEDVEDEV: Yeah, I would guess the career is long, so some matches I won like this. I would not think too much about it, but it's unfortunate situation in both matches.

You know, look at, like, Australian Open in 2024, which was a year and a half ago, which is not long ago, because I played for, like, 20 years already, I managed to do it the other way around.

It's just tennis. This year I lost maybe three matches where I could serve it out. At least I remember three. I need to do better next time. As I say, next time I'm there, maybe I do the same thing.

Today unfortunate, nothing I can do and get ready for the next one.

Q. There has been a couple of players complaining about the timing of the anti-doping tests, very early in the morning. Wondered if you experienced that here or at any other tournament? Is the timing unfortunate? Does it disrupt your preparation? Or do you think it comes with the territory of being a top-level athlete?

DANIIL MEDVEDEV: I think it depends, because you choose the time when they come. The rule is that if they decide to come, let's say here in the press room, they have the right to do it. If they find you in the restaurant somewhere at 10:00 in the evening, this never happened to me, but they have the right to do the doping test if they know it's you.

So it's tricky if you lie to them and tell them it's not you, maybe -- but anyway, that's way too far of a discussion. This never happens.

For me, it's the same. I usually like it's tough to know the timing in the evening, do you go dinner, not, so usually we put in the morning. If you have practice early, let's say you leave the hotel at 8:00, usually put from 6:00 to 7:00, because you're scared that if you put from 7:00 to 8:00, if they come at 8:00, you lose your practice, because maybe you don't want to pee, and then at 10:00 you only pee and leave the hotel and you lose a day.

Usually it happens early. I think that's why, because it never happen to me that I have my time slot at 10:00, and suddenly someone is at my door at 6:00.

It's a hassle, because I myself, when I just came into (indiscernible), I had two missed tests, because it's actually very tricky. People think, oh, how can he miss it? Well, try traveling 25 countries a year. Try not to forget one date that you're not in Monaco but in Paris already and change it.

So, yeah, it's not easy, but it is what it is.

Q. Maybe I'm wrong, but I guess you don't make the handshake with the ref at the end.

DANIIL MEDVEDEV: I think I forgot. I thought about this when I walked out of the court. There was no problem, and I love Renaud. Walking already five minutes after the match, I was, like, did I forget the handshake? I thought maybe not. So when I see him, I'm just going to say, I mean, I was so disappointed but there was absolutely no problem with him, and I love him.

Q. Wondered if the way you process defeats has changed at all over the years, nowadays compared to how it was when you lost a slam final or whatever. If you think back to how you were then and how you are now, what are the differences?

DANIIL MEDVEDEV: I probably think it's the same. I lost probably three times here first round in five sets. It's always the same story. Couple of days or maybe one week, two weeks before the next tournament, I'm going to be feeling not good, I'm going to change the surface, so in your game you're not going to feel not good, maybe next tournament is not going to be easy. Then you wait, work hard, and wait for the moment where it goes up again.

So I don't think necessarily changed too much. Yeah, disappointed to lose, but have 10 more tournaments this year or maybe 12, I don't know. I need to try to play them well.

Q. (Off mic.)

DANIIL MEDVEDEV: It's not the same, because first round it's not the final. It's just not the same energy, not the same feeling. It depends, like, the one against Rafa hurt a lot. The one against Jannik not really, I was dead and he played well.

It depends the match itself, the energy you had, et cetera.

Q. I read that you changed your strings during the match? Is that true?

DANIIL MEDVEDEV: True.

Q. Could you talk about that? If you have done that before.

DANIIL MEDVEDEV: Yeah, I mean, I have, but till 2023 I have never done it. Something started to change on tour, I had to adapt. Now I'm never sure. Like, long story short, I was sure, at one moment of this year I said to myself, okay, I'm going to try, you know, one strings, forget about everything, and worked well one tournament in Marseilles.

I go to Doha. I'm happy that I made this decision. I played Karen. During the match I see that I'm not going to win. So I changed my strings to completely different strings and I win the match.

Every tournament is so different. This one is so different from Rome and Madrid. Clay, the balls, like, everything. I had one week here. I didn't find anything that worked well. So during the match, I had to change something when I was losing. It actually worked. Unfortunately I didn't win.

Q. What was your setup before and after in the match?

DANIIL MEDVEDEV: It was kind of more loose before and the ones that I took after were less loose. I could hit a bit more and maybe miss less. When I tried them on practice, people were killing me. So maybe in the match it's a bit different, everyone is a bit tight so going through the court less. Yeah, I changed for something that I would make less mistakes.

Q. I don't think you came to press after your loss in Australia. Curious how this one compares to that one. And also, how you processed it? And if there is any sense, now you have fewer points to defend next year with these losses?

DANIIL MEDVEDEV: Not really. You want to win points. You want to be in the top 4 or top 8, because that's important for the draws. When you lose first round, it's not important, because you will get the same player. If you want to win tournaments it could be important.

But the press in Australia, yeah, I never got really this question, but I don't know the rules exactly. I know also the press is obligatory. Sometimes it's like the request was not at the right time or whatever. Sometimes at night you might not have to come there.

So I got from someone -- I got said, was ready to go, I got said that it's not obligatory. I go, Okay, I'm not coming. Sorry, guys. If it would not be obligated today I would not be coming also.

THE MODERATOR: You were not requested.

DANIIL MEDVEDEV: Yeah, I was not requested, you see?

I always come, so that's not a problem for me. It's going to be, as I said, pretty much the same feeling. Like after Australia it's going to be bad, it's going to hurt, and then you go to the next tournament, you work hard, you try your best to be better.