Jannik Sinner pokes fun at Daniil Medvedev's clay prowess after Miami Open loss
Jannik Sinner took a humorous dig at Daniil Medvedev's clay-court record during his runner-up speech in Miami.
Sinner and Medvedev contested the Miami Open final on Sunday (April 2), and the latter won 7-5, 6-3 to claim his fourth title of the season. This is the second time Sinner has lost a title clash in Miami, having also been beaten by Hubert Hurkacz in 2021.
Jannik Sinner congratulated Daniil Medvedev on his win and recent run of form during the presentation ceremony, before jokingly reminding him that the clay season was up next.
"First of all, Congrats Daniil, not only for this tournament but also the last five, minimum final, and playing incredible tennis. Congrats to you and obviously your team for an incredible job. Now clay season starts, let's see how you do there, but I wish you all the best," Sinner said.
Medvedev himself recently made a joke about his record on the surface, stating that it was a "pity" the clay season was around the corner.
"It's a pity it is clay season next up, but I am going to try. I am really happy with my results so far but it is not over," the Russian said.
The 27-year-old has a surprisingly dismal record on clay, winning only 18 out of 41 matches so far. Last season, he missed all the Masters 1000 tournaments on the surface as he was recovering from a hernia operation.
Medvedev then suffered a second-round exit at the Geneva Open before losing to Marin Cilic in the fourth round of the French Open.
Daniil Medvedev leads 6-0 in the head-to-head against Jannik Sinner
Jannik Sinner is yet to win a match against Daniil Medvedev; the Russian now leads 6-0 in the head-to-head between the two.
The Miami Open final was the second time the two players squared off in 2023. They previously locked horns in the title clash at the ABN AMRO Open in Rotterdam. Sinner won the opening set of that match 7-5 before Medvedev bounced back to win the next two sets 6-2, 6-2 for his first title of the 2023 season.
The Italian's run in Miami will see him return to the top 10 of the ATP rankings for the first time since March 2022. Meanwhile, Medvedev will move up to fourth, just ahead of Casper Ruud.
Both players are next scheduled to compete in the Monte-Carlo Masters, which will start on April 9.