Daniil Medvedev sets humble goals for.clay season

Russian tennis star Daniil Medvedev has set humble goals for the clay season as he hopes to win at least one math at every tournament he plays. 

Medvedev, ranked at No. 3 in the world, is set to kick off his clay season this week at the Madrid Masters.

"The goal for all 3 tournaments, Rome, Roland Garros and Madrid, is to at least win one match in each of them. Step by step. Of course when I come to the tournaments the main goal is to win it. But it's tougher on clay than hard court," Medvedev said, per Ravi Ubha.

Medvedev hasn't played since losing in the Miami Masters quarterfinal to Roberto Bautista Agut. 

"He has been able to work for a week. The first few days we kept a close eye on the reaction of his heart to effort, the reaction of his lungs, we were very attentive to his health sensations – headaches, difficulty in exertion – in order to adjust our training demand. You don’t pick up like that overnight after a week off, especially after contracting a little-known virus," Medvedev's coach Gilles Cervara told Tennis Majors.

Medvedev behind others in preparation for Roland Garros 

"It is significant. When you see Stefanos Tsitsipas who has played 10 matches and the certainty he has created by winning nine (by winning in Monte Carlo, (reaching the) final in Barcelona, ed.), he is not the only one. The extent of this delay is unknown. I shouldn’t compare us to other players, we just have to focus on our own goals, day by day, to get to the end of the road. I can’t be ahead of my player”. 

Stunningly, Medvedev has never won a match at the French Open as he has four first round exits.

"We’ll do Madrid and Rome. These tournaments will reveal things that will allow us to discuss and choose what will happen just before Roland Garros. For our training and possibly to play another tournament. He has a lot of room for improvement on clay. He’s never won a match at Roland Garros. We’ve been seen joking about it before, which is good for not letting the pressure get to us, but I don’t feel like joking much anymore," Cervara added.

from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/3tjPoxF