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'Actually, with Rafa maybe I even... than with Djokovic': Medvedev sends bombshell message to Nadal ahead of comeback
Daniil Medvedev commented on Rafael Nadal's comeback and made huge comparison with Novak Djokovic.
Tennis fans will be eagerly waiting as Rafael Nadal will make his comeback at the Brisbane International. The Spaniard has been out of action since last January, when he hurt his hip flexor during a defeat in the Australian Open second round. Then in May, a little more than a week before the French Open, he announced that he would miss the Grand Slam event, without informing about any return date.
On December 7, Nadal took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to announce his comeback and also hinted that it could be his swansong year. There are concerns about his fitness since his comeback announcement, but world No. 3 Daniil Medvedev feels that Nadal will still be a 'great challenge' for him.
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Speaking to The National, the Russian ace said, "It’s just that all the seasons that he played he wins a lot of matches and doesn’t lose many. It’s very tough to beat him."
"Actually, with Rafa maybe I even had even less success than with Novak in a way. But we had some tight matches where I felt like I could win and maybe he got the edge in the end. So, for me it’s going to be a great challenge if I have to face him. I don’t know at the moment his shape, no one knows, and how he’s going to handle. But from what I saw, he seems to be doing good and that’s great for tennis," he added.
Of his five major finals, Medvedev has twice faced Rafael Nadal at the 2019 US Open and 2022 Australian Open. He lost both matches, and trails 1-5 vs Nadal in terms of head-to-head.
Speaking about the upcoming season, Medvedev said, "The only thing we’re sure is Novak is always there. I could be out of 10, Novak is always there. So hopefully I can be part of this top four and whoever the other three guys and I’m going to try to do it."
