Daniil Medvedev and Kasper Rudd say players who choose to play from behind the tee have had a hard time on smaller courts on the ATP Tour, even though they both recognize it’s part of the game.
Following his loss to Aslan Karatev in the fourth round at the Madrid Open, Medvedev complained about the size of the Arantsa Sanchez Stadium, as there was not enough room to counter his opponent’s size and influence his match. to serve.
Next up is the Italian Open, where the courts at the Foro Italico stand deep and may give players a bit more space, but Medvedev was once again asked for his thoughts on the matter.
The thing is, when I spoke to my coach after the game, I could have done better, how was the game, I thought it was a great game, where Aslan played well, which was amazing. The only thing we agreed with the coach was that it was disappointing, I don’t know how the game would have turned out if I could have been more in return.
“It’s more important for me on clay than on hard courts because I can adapt on hard courts. I love hard courts. It was really a small court in Doha. I was able to win.
“On clay, especially with Aslan, who has a really hard serve, because I can’t go forward, I’ve been lifting all the balls a little bit, so I can’t really dominate him. On top of that, if you don’t place power, you get an instant winner. I didn’t get many opportunities with his service, and that was very disappointing.
Of course, not all tournaments have the space and money to have big courts and Medvedev understands this.
He added: «From one point of view, I understand that maybe all the tournaments in the world want to make all the playing fields as big as I want or other players want.» At the same time, it is a disadvantage.
«I had a problem playing Karatesev on the second court. Even though I was at 98%, he wouldn’t let me play 100% tennis. That’s disappointing because it was the same, the practice courts are always lower.»
The world No. 3 had a strong training session with Taylor Fritz in Rome on Tuesday and admitted he had a flash of Madrid.
“I practiced with Fritz today. There were some good shots from him. I was touching the fence and lost the point because I touched the fence. I was immediately thinking of Madrid.
“Yes, I would like every tennis court to be 10 meters long and 10 meters wide, but I understand that it is not possible. «Every time I don’t want to find my position on the return, I’m disappointed because I can’t play my best tennis.»
While Rudd supports Medvedev’s concerns, he is a player who is not at his best when the courts are small, as he cannot stand deep enough to challenge power forwards.
“Some courts on tour may be smaller or larger than others, not stadium-wise, but length behind the starting line. So there are two courts that can be a bit small for me at times,” said the Norwegian.
«Just to be honest, maybe you look at myself or a player like Daniil Medvedev, for example, when we played in Madrid last week, the center court is very big in Madrid, for example, court number 2, if you look at me and Daniil, we are very close to the linesman. It can be a little difficult at times.»
“When you have a linesman you feel like you can’t hit the ball and these things are half a meter behind you. You will feel like a little bit of a custard.
“Again, it’s our own fault that we chose to stay that far back. I think we both feel when I’m behind or when I’m behind, I’m winning more points than when I’m staying behind. That’s why we do it. Some players like to stay no matter what.
Read more: Why Daniil Medvedev can never shake clay court demons after Madrid Open exit