ADELAIDE (Reuters) – Daniil Medvedev said he needed a long time to recover from his loss to Rafa Nadal in last year’s Australian Open final, but the Russian vowed to use his experiences to reach a higher level in 2023 as he gears up for the season’s first Grand Slam.
Medvedev was up two sets when Nadal pulled off a comeback for the ages by sealing a 2-6 6-7(5) 6-4 6-4 7-5 victory in a thrilling final at Rod Laver Arena to deny his opponent his second major crown.
“I felt absolutely terrible… the thing about life and tennis is that you have to get over it, try to learn from it because you can’t change the past,” Medvedev told reporters on Sunday, before the Adelaide International 1 tournament.
“I had some tough moments in my career… tough losses — I know a lot of losses in a row and I always managed to find a way back, so I’m sure I’m going to find the way back to an even higher level than I was playing maybe last year.
“But yeah, the match was not easy to get over for some time, but right now I’m looking forward to the Australian Open again, and I want to do better than last year. That’s the goal.”
After losing to Nadal at Melbourne Park, Medvedev exited the French Open in the fourth round, while a ban on Russian players at Wimbledon due to Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine forced him to miss the grasscourt major.
His title defence at the U.S. Open ended following a fourth-round defeat by Australian Nick Kyrgios and the 26-year-old went on to lose his number one ranking.
Teenager Carlos Alcaraz ended 2022 as the top-ranked player and Medvedev said the men’s field looked as strong as ever with the emergence of new faces in the top 10.
“I think it’s always difficult because it’s always some new players that come in. Some old ones are maybe playing a little bit worse, but they’re coming back… Carlos is number one in the world now, playing amazing,” Medvedev said.
Medvedev will open his season against Italian Lorenzo Sonego in the Adelaide ATP 250 event with a potential semi-final clash with 21-times Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic.
(Reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar in Bengaluru; Editing by Kim Coghill)
