"Novak Djokovic is for me the greatest in the history of tennis, but this is debatable" - Daniil Medvedev
Daniil Medvedev sang the praises of Novak Djokovic for managing to win matches even on his bad days, thus calling him "the greatest in the history of tennis."
Over the years, the Serbian has shown that he is capable of snatching stunning victories from the jaws of defeat. It is not a new sight to watch the former World No. 1 lose the first set and then drastically stage a comeback to pull off an upset over his opponents.
From losing the first set to eventually beating Rafael Nadal in the semifinals of the 2021 French Open to coming back from two sets down against Jannik Sinner in the quarterfinals of the 2022 Wimbledon, Djokovic has unbelievably managed to win more of these matches in his career.
Speaking at the pre-tournament press conference, Daniil Medvedev expressed his admiration for the World No. 2.
He reckoned that the Serbian legend has been in the final for half of the Grand Slams he has played in. The Russian further questioned his form and said that even on his bad days, he manages to win.
"I think if I saw it right, Novak is almost 50%. I think I saw he played 70 majors, and 35 he was in the final. I don't know how is it possible. He doesn't have bad days? Actually, he does, like everybody. Even on these bad days, he manages to beat the opponent," he said.
Medvedev continued to sing the praises of the 23-time Grand Slam winner and wondered how he was able to pull off these upsets.
He also said that for this outstanding ability, he finds Djokovic to be the greatest in the history of tennis. The World No. 3, however, added that his opinion is also subject to debate.
"It's actually tough because it's one against one. Both of them want to win. I don't know how he's doing it. That's why he's for me the greatest in the history of tennis. But this is basically, of course, debatable," Medvedev added.
Novak Djokovic was defeated by Daniil Medvedev in the 2021 US Open final
Novak Djokovic was within hand-shaking distance of winning a calendar Grand Slam in 2021 when he locked horns with Daniil Medvedev in the final of the US Open.
Having won that year's Australian Open, the French Open, and Wimbledon, the Serbian was the favorite to lift the title in New York and create history.
However, the second seed of the tournament had other plans, as he spared not even an inch en route to his maiden Grand Slam win. The Russian beat the former World No. 1 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 to win the 2021 US Open title.
Alluding to this victory, the World No. 3 said in the pre-tournament press conference of the 2023 Wimbledon that he was proud to have beaten Djokovic in a Grand Slam final.
"To be able to beat him when he was going for a Grand Slam, maybe he was a little bit tighter than usual, but I played an amazing match. This gives me even more pride that I was able to do it, given what he continued to do after this," Medvedev added.