Jannik Sinner has been playing magnificently and he credited Daniil Medvedev for some of his improvements.
The Italian took the tennis world by storm as he captured the first two Grand Slams of his career and clinched the year-end World number one ranking.
The level of his game has increased tremendously over the past 12 months and enters the 2025 season as the man to beat.
But despite Jannik Sinner’s historic season, he is not resting on his laurels as he admits there is an area of his game he has to keep working on.
What did Jannik Sinner say about Daniil Medvedev as he looks to keep improving his game?
Sinner has been able to ascend to the top of men’s tennis due his improved serve and ability to hit powerful and offensive shots.
Not only does he possess precise yet aggressive ground strokes he is also very consistent and takes time away from his opponents with how early he strikes the ball.
But during an interview with Esquire Australia, Sinner admits he struggles with one particular aspect of his game. “It’s a mix between solid and aggressive. I struggle more defensively” the reigning Australian and US Open champion admitted.
“In fact, I try not to go into defence. My tennis is versatile, but, for example, I still don’t know how to play the net game well.”
Sinner also took time to credit to rival Daniil Medvedev for forcing him to change his game to turn their head-to-head record in his favour.
“A player who has made me grow a lot is Medvedev” Sinner added. ”I had never done serve and volley, and he forced me to practise that to try to beat him.
“Against some players, I have to do more of a long backhand. In tennis, you learn from your relationship with your opponent. The real question for the player is: how do I get into the opponent’s head? If you guess the answer, things in the match change.”
What is Jannik Sinner and Daniil Medvedev’s head-to-head record?
Medvedev dominated the first half of his rivalry with Sinner, winning the first six meetings.
But the 23-year-old stormed back, and has won eight of his last nine encounters with the World number five.
Five of those victories came in 2024, including two at November’s ATP Finals, which Sinner went on to win without dropping a set.
Medvedev’s last win against the World number one came at the Wimbledon Championships.
He defeated Sinner 6-7(7) 6-4 7-6(4) 2-6 6-3 to advance to the quarter-finals and that was his first victory against Sinner since the 2023 Miami Open.
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