“I did beat both of them in Grand Slams” : Daniil Medvedev gives hones opinion if he can challenge Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner
Daniil Medvedev sailed through into the second round of the 2026 Australian Open, as he defeated Jesper De Jong in straight sets. However, the Russian had to dig deep in the first and the third set, where his opponent played quite well.
After his victory in the first round, Daniil Medvedev was asked if he players ranked between world number 3 to 15 can compete against the likes of Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz. Both, Alcaraz and Sinner have been dominating world tennis for the last two seasons, winning four Majors each.
Daniil Medvedev gave his honest opinion, stating that the duo are obviously a level above the rest. He stated that if he competes against the two, he is more likely to lose more matches. However, Daniil Medvedev believes that even the world’s best can have their off-days, and he could capitalize on it.
Daniil Medvedev says he backs himself to defeat Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner on their off-days
Daniil Medvedev stated he has defeated both, Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner in Grand Slams before. The Russian has defeated Carlos Alcaraz twice in Grand Slams, with the latest one coming at the 2023 US Open. The Russian also defeated Jannik Sinner at the Wimbledon Championships in 2024.
“Jannik and Carlos it’s tough. They just play better tennis than other guys. I think what’s important is that I played a lot of big names in tennis, and you can beat anyone on a given day. I’m not shy to say that if I play 20 matches against Carlos and Jannik, let’s say 10 with each of them, I’ll probably lose a lot of them. But I’m gonna try my best in every one of them to win. Out of 10 matches, you can win some. I’m not gonna say a number, but you can win. They can have a bit of an off day. I did beat both of them in Grand Slams,” said Medvedev.
Interestingly, Daniil Medvedev did not face the either of the two players last season. This was largely down to the fact that the Russian dropped out of the top 10 rankings, after suffering multiple early-round exits at Grand Slam events.
