'Deep-court Daniil' reveals return strategy

You can’t win if you are not in the game.

Daniil Medvedev has built a reputation as arguably the game's best deep-court returner. On Monday, after the World No. 3 broke Nuno Borges’ serve six times en route to a four-set fourth-round win at the hard-court major, Medvedev explained his approach inside Rod Laver Arena in a walk-and-talk post-match interview with Jim Courier

“I started here,” explained Medvedev after walking Courier to a spot just behind the baseline. “Then one moment with my coach, or even by myself, [I changed]… I would come on Tour and there is Jo-Wilfried Tsonga who is serving 220 kilometres per hour. I lost a match [against him], I remember, really easy, no break points. I was like, ‘Maybe I should do something different’.

“So the next time I played someone who served big, I would go somewhere here,” continued Medvedev as he began to walk Courier back towards the advertising hoardings at the back of the court. “Then I played someone who served bigger, and I would go somewhere [even further back].

“Then at one moment, I understood that I can play many guys like this because what it makes me do is, when I’m on the ball, I kind of don’t hit a return. I hit like a normal topspin shot, because when the ball comes to me it is in a good position. So I just understood that’s where my return is the best, and I started playing better.”

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Medvedev’s numbers against Borges reflect how difficult the 20-time tour-level titlist’s return game is to break down. He successfully returned 113 of 137 serves from the Portuguese World No. 69, including 75 of 92 on first serves, and ultimately won 40 per cent (55/137) of return points according to Infosys Stats.

For Borges, Medvedev’s refusal to offer him any ‘easy’ points was the deciding factor in the pair’s maiden Lexus ATP Head2Head clash.

“I thought I had the shots to make a difference,” said Borges in his post-match press conference. “He just made me hit another one and another one and another one until I would eventually make a mistake. He was really good at just making me feel that way, like a little desperate to win the point.

“He was always reading my game, but I guess that's why he is so good. It makes you feel that way. Even though you feel like you have control of the match, you don't really. He doesn't really give you the point that easily.”

So is Medvedev the ATP Tour’s ‘master of returning’? Not according to the man himself. The 27-year-old just views his approach as a simple case of playing to his strengths.

“You called me the master of return, but I don’t think so because my return from close, I don’t think is that good,” Medvedev explained to Courier. “I can do it, but it’s not the best.”