“They were telling him: you can’t beat Alcaraz, you can’t do this, but he’s beating them” – Bublik and Kyrgios on Medvedev’s determination

Daniil Medvedev doesn’t always gain consideration from pundits when they discuss the two or three players that are likely to win any given major title. Until he’s retired every conversation seems to start with Novak Djokovic, then skip a full generation on the way to Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner.

But what about Daniil Medvedev, the man who has defeated them all at the Slams?

In the latest edition of “All on the Table,” a UTS talk show featuring Patrick Mouratoglou, Nick Kyrgios and Alexander Bublik, the conversation shifts to Medvedev and why he shouldn’t be excluded from Grand Slam discussions.

“You can’t talk to the guy”

Reason No 1: He’s an incredibly hard worker.

“He trains like, three, four hours a day,” Kyrgios said, before Bublik quickly jumps in.

“It’s the way he does it,” Bublik says. “The focus on the practice, you can’t talk to the guy.”

Bublik says he just doesn’t have the focus or the drive to work that way, but he seems to be in awe of how much time and energy Medvedev puts into his tennis. He tells a story to illustrate his point.

“I also had a couple of consultants, like famous guys, I won’t name them,” Bubliks says. “And they told me: if you want to practice like an hour, one hour 30 minutes a day, you have to 100 percent focus – you don’t talk. For me, it’s tough, but for him he can do that for three, four hours a day.”

“It’s nuts,” Kyrgios quips. 

A good example

“That’s why he achieved,” Bublik continues, stressing how well Medvedev has performed at the top players in the last four years. “How many finals has he had? How many Slams were taken from him because of Novak and Rafa.” 

Medvedev could have three Slams to his name now, if it weren’t for two that he lost in excruciating fashion, at the Australian Open in 2022 and 2023.

“There’s no way he should have lost the one against Rafa at the Australian Open, that was just insane – it was 2-3, 0-40 on Rafa’s serve,” Kyrgios says, before adding: “Medvedev’s Cool. I actually like watching him play. He’s one of the players I enjoy, because he’s so stuck in his ways. Like with his returning and just the way he plays, he just won’t change.”

At that point Bublik steps in to finish his point. He wants to say that you should never underestimate Medvedev. He wants to remind you that many have done that already, and he has proven them wrong.

“They were telling him: you can’t beat Alcaraz you can’t do this, but he’s beating them. He’s making finals, he’s winning Slams, he’s a good example, as I said.” 

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