CHINA OPEN

September 26, 2025

Daniil Medvedev

Press Conference

D. MEDVEDEV/C. Norrie

6-3, 6-4

THE MODERATOR: Welcome to the press conference of Daniil Medvedev.

Congrats, Daniil. How do you think this one is different from the defeat you had at Roland Garros? What made it work today better?

DANIIL MEDVEDEV: Yeah, I mean, definitely a different surface. It's a bit tough to compare.

I like the way I played. Cameron is a great player, top 10 before. Happy with my level. I think I played well the match. I served pretty well. For sure there were some moments where I could be a bit better, but I'm happy with the general level of the match and looking forward.

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. You said you had a great training session in Monaco before coming here. Now you played three matches in China. Do you feel you kind of get your tennis back already?

DANIIL MEDVEDEV: Not yet. Very far from it. It's a step-by-step process. Sometimes you can make, like, a big gap. You never know. For the moment it's a step-by-step process.

Today, for example, I think I played better than the two matches in Hangzhou. Happy with that and looking forward to try to do it even a bit better next match.

Q. When you come into a tournament like the China Open where you've had some pretty solid results in the past, do you think back to those results, in your mind think that you need to get to that level to be successful? With the new association with Thomas and Rohan Goetzke, what are their roles going to be? What is going to be the difference between what they do?

DANIIL MEDVEDEV: Yeah, I mean, first of all, for sure coming here I don't think about last years and the previous years' results because I was in a different position. I was sometimes coming after like the final of US Open. Last year I lost in quarters, but lost to Jannik. I was kind of only losing to Jannik or Carlos.

Now I'm in a different position. I need to step by step bring my game back. That's when I can finally meet someone like Carlos or Jannik in the tournament (smiling).

About Thomas and Rohan, look, it's just a start. It's tough to say for sure and exactly. Till the end of the season we're just trying. But for sure Rohan cannot travel as much as Thomas. Thomas more on a day-to-day basis. Rohan a bit more sometimes here and there, talking what he thinks.

So far it's been great and it's been a lot of fun to work with them.

Q. As of right now, do you feel like there's a sense of clarity in terms of you know what you need to do, you just need time? Does it feel a little bit like you're still searching a little bit to figure out the blueprint and the game plan?

DANIIL MEDVEDEV: Definitely no clarity yet. But I'm trying. I'm not that far to find it. It will take some time. It will take some dedication, which maybe I didn't have enough.

I mean, I always feel like I'm someone who has dedication, but maybe I could have had a dedication in another way, which I didn't do this year. I had dedication, I always have. Maybe I didn't put it into the right way. Maybe I needed to turn right and put this dedication in. That's what I'm trying to do step by step now.

Again, what makes me really confident that I can do it is I had this practice week in Monaco, where there is no tournament coming, no stress, et cetera. I was able to produce some exceptional level of tennis, like above the roof. So I have it in me. I just need to find a way to put it back on the tennis court - in tournaments, of course.

Q. Your next opponent will be Davidovich Fokina. How do you see that matchup?

DANIIL MEDVEDEV: To be honest, usually I feel like I like to play in a way against him. I think my game matches up against his.

He's in a better, let's call it, form right now. I don't know. It's not even about the points. He had probably more victories lately than I did. Got unlucky in Washington. Playing great. Actually we played a serious exhibition match and I won.

I will try to play my best. He's a very strong player. I know if I want to beat him, I need to be at my best, and I'll try to do it.

Q. Talking about dedication, I heard you had 30 minutes training after the match with Thomas. What a hard worker you are. Were there problems to fix or something?

DANIIL MEDVEDEV: No, no, Thomas wanted me to hit some shots. It was more probably like seven minutes or 10 minutes, so not that long.

Yeah, I mean, it's nothing like too special. A lot of players do it. We had a center court free for us because the next match is not soon. There was an opportunity and we just hit some balls. Nothing crazy.

Q. I'm getting the sense from a lot of the players that the fan reception has been particularly impressive this year. What is the most impressive fan gift that you've received in your years here in Beijing? What do you make of the fans here?

DANIIL MEDVEDEV: Fans are great. I love coming back to China. I feel like fans love me here, which is not the case all over the world, so it feels nice (smiling).

I love them back. I love playing in China. Absolutely love actually traveling to China, Chinese food. The hotels are great, et cetera. Just love being here.

But the gifts? I usually don't take gifts. I say it in a nice way, Look, guys, I don't take gifts. Probably there would be something. For example, in the player party, there was a game you needed to throw like a circle around the toy. They gave me a lot of tries. In the beginning I was not good. Then I won, like, five. They're all in my room. I'll bring them to my daughters. There are some big toys, some small toys. Pretty fun, yeah.

Q. Speaking on the dedication aspect, what's happened this year with yourself is not the Daniil Medvedev everyone knows, so did you get to a point where you really felt concerned that things were not going the way you are used to them going? I don't mean this in a bad way, but how much of a distraction has been an expanding family?

DANIIL MEDVEDEV: Yeah, I mean, the thing about tennis, what is beautiful about the sport, what is the toughest thing, and sorry, I go a bit far, I act a little bit crazy on the court sometimes. So many amateur people come to me in France or in Monaco. They go, Look, I'm like you, I'm calm. When I'm in life, I am calm. On the road, I'm calm. Whatever. I argue with my wife, I'm calm. And there, I'm a (indiscernible). They say, I go play tennis and I go nuts, I go crazy.

Tennis can drive you crazy. Me, it drives me crazy because you don't know. You ask me why did I have a bad year? I don't have the exact answer. It could be my second daughter. It could be my relationship I don't know with Gilles. It could be that I became older and started thinking more than when I was younger. It could be just bad luck or maybe physically I was not feeling well somewhere. You never know.

So I don't have an answer to your question about expanding family. I definitely love my two daughters, I love my wife. It's not a problem for me. Even if I play somehow tennis worse because I have a second daughter, I'm happy about it and I don't care.

For sure I was concerned. I'm still concerned. I'm trying to find a way to show everyone that I'm capable of doing big things again.