Gilles Simon shares how his role in Daniil Medvedev's 1st victory against Novak Djokovic included him in Russian's team: "I explained to him & he won"
Former tennis pro Gilles Simon recently shared how his advice that helped Daniil Medvedev secure his first win over Novak Djokovic, led to his inclusion in the Russian's coaching team.
Medvedev tasted victory against Djokovic for the first time at the 2019 Monte-Carlo Masters. The duo clashed in the quarterfinals with the Russian beating the Serb 6-3, 4-6, 6-2 to advance to the semifinals where he was defeated by another Serb, Dusan Lajovic.
Simon, now part of Medvedev's team as a technical advisor, disclosed in an interview with Le Figaro that the former World No. 1 remembered his advice from Monte Carlo and thus wanted to try his luck again.
"Daniil contacted me and asked if I’d be interested in doing a few weeks with them (Medvedev and his team) in 2024," Simon said.
"(In 2019, before he faced Novak Djokovic in the quarterfinals in Monte-Carlo) he had said to me: 'Novak…what do you think?' I had explained to him how to play and he had won (his first victory against Djokovic, after three defeats in as many matches). He remembered, which is why he wanted to try it out with me," he added.
Medvedev and Djokovic have faced each other 15 times on the ATP Tour, with Djokovic having a 10-5 head-to-head advantage. Their rivalry began in 2017 with their most recent clash coming at the 2023 US Open, where Djokovic defeated Medvedev to win his record 24th Grand Slam.
Daniil Medvedev will next compete in Dubai Tennis Championships
Daniil Medvedev's next destination is the Dubai Tennis Championships, where he is the top seed. Notably, this tournament will mark the first time the Russian will be defending a title. He is scheduled to kick off his campaign against Alexander Shevchenko on February 27.
This follows Medvedev's impressive showing at the Australian Open, where he reached the final for the third consecutive year, only to be defeated by Italy's Jannik Sinner in a thrilling five-set encounter.
Medvedev lifted the trophy in Dubai last year by beating his compatriot Andrey Rublev in the championship match. Before that, he navigated through a challenging field, securing wins against players such as Matteo Arnaldi, Alexander Bublik, Borna Coric and Novak Djokovic.
The tournament in the Middle Eastern country carries significant importance for the Russian this year, as he has 500 points to defend. This follows Jannik Sinner replacing him to become the new World No. 3.