Daniil Medvedev may wish he did not have to play at Indian Wells next after his success in Dubai.
Medvedev won the Dubai Tennis Championships last week, which is the first time he has won the same tournament twice.
This has continued a resurgent start to the 2026 season for the former world number one, with Medvedev ahead of Jannik Sinner so far this year.
Although Medvedev will be pleased with his victory in Dubai, he will likely not be happy when he arrives at Indian Wells.
Daniil Medvedev has complained about the slowness of Indian Wells’ courts
The courts at Indian Wells are notably slower than most hard courts, which is something that Medvedev has called out in the past.
During his match against Alexander Zverev at the 2023 tournament, Medvedev went on a rant about just how slow he thought the courts were.
“Should be banned from playing here,” said Medvedev. “Freakin’ disgrace to the sport. This freakin’ court, man.
“They call it hard court. What a shame to call this awful court a hard court. I’ll go to the toilet, but I don’t care, give me a time violation. I’m going to be as slow as this court, again. I don’t care.
“Give me five time violations. I’ll go in one minute. If they allow us to play on such a court then I can allow myself to do whatever I want.”
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These are echoed by Medvedev’s comments after winning the Dubai Tennis Championships, where the courts were particularly quick.
When speaking to Tennis Bolshoi, Medvedev admitted that he finds it harder to finish points on slower courts.
“The Dubai court is probably the fastest I’ve personally seen in the last, I don’t know, three years,” said Medvedev. “And I’ve always said fast courts suit my game more, my technique, my shots.
“On slow courts it’s harder, let’s say, to accelerate the ball. On fast courts, you don’t need to do that. You just put it inside the lines, you don’t have to hit full power.
“So everything suited me in Dubai. With each match, I played better and better. The match with [Felix] Auger-Aliassime was great, and of course I was super motivated for the final, but it just didn’t happen.”
It is unlikely that the speeds of the courts at Indian Wells have changed dramatically over the past year, and therefore it is expected that Medvedev will be left frustrated during his matches.
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Daniil Medvedev may actually not be as against Indian Wells as he lets on
While Medvedev has often vented his frustrations about the conditions at Indian Wells, it is actually his third best Masters 1000 tournament in terms of winning percentage.
Having reached the final twice within the past three years, Medvedev has shown that his game is adaptable to the slower surfaces, even if he does not like them.
Even in a relatively disappointing 2025 season for Medvedev, he still managed to reach the semifinals at Indian Wells, and only two players have been able to beat him in the past three years at the tournament, with one being Carlos Alcaraz.
| Year | Daniil Medvedev’s result at Indian Wells |
| 2017 | First Round |
| 2018 | Third Round |
| 2019 | Third Round |
| 2021 | Fourth Round |
| 2022 | Third Round |
| 2023 | Final |
| 2024 | Final |
| 2025 | Semifinal |
Medvedev has also complained about tennis balls recently, but he has suggested that he actually does not mind variety in both courts and balls in the same interview with Tennis Bolshoi.
He also explained that he thinks tennis courts have generally got quicker in recent years, particularly during the US Open hard court swing.
“Well first of all preferably fast courts, but again I’ve always said that I’m for variety,” added Medvedev. “I understand that not all courts should be fast, not all balls have to be perfect, but there should be variety.
“It wasn’t really, probably in 2023, even though I played well, back then all the courts were really slow. There were almost no fast courts. Now things are changing, Cincinnati was fast.
“Last year, in general, America was fast. Sometimes people say I complain all the time, but last year in America I lost in the first round everywhere. But the courts were fast, and it was pleasant to play, I just didn’t do well there.”
Medvedev may contradict these statements during Indian Wells this year, with the tournament getting underway on Wednesday, March 4.
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