Medvedev gives his opinion on the controversy of Sinner and cramps

Pedro de Pablos | 16 May 2026 | 17.56

Medvedev gives his opinion on the Sinner controversy and cramps.

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Daniil Medvedev has put on a great performance against Jannik Sinner in the semifinals of the ATP Rome 2026, but it wasn't enough to eliminate him. After the match, the Russian tennis player talked about his excellent level shown during the tournament and the controversy regarding the world number one and his cramps.

In theory, a tennis player cannot request medical time for treatment of cramps, but Jannik Sinner had that advantage in the second set against Medvedev, something that the Russian player complained about. However, in the subsequent press conference, he played down the issue and made it clear what he would do to eliminate this type of controversies on the circuit, which are more frequent than it seems.

Medvedev praises his game ahead of Roland Garros

Confidence after the match against Sinner

It's a pleasure to play tennis so well. Even in the first set, I thought I didn't play that badly. When you play against Jannik and you're not at 110%, you can't play poorly and lose 6-2. I managed to raise my level in the second set. Even today, honestly, even though it was a bit quick. I'm glad how I almost tied it at 30, saving a couple of match points with my serve. I'm very pleased with my level. I was disappointed to lose. In terms of confidence, look, every week is a new week. It's good to reach this level before Roland Garros, but it will be a new path there. We'll see what comes.

Sinner's Clamps and Controversy with the Physio

Actually, at first, I wanted to say it was impossible to sell it, but I have a solution: allow physical attention, allow medical treatment to help. Allow medical attention, in other words, three minutes of physiotherapy, when you have cramps. Then there would be no problem because a player could say, "I have cramps, I need a physiotherapist." At the moment, it's not allowed. I understand perfectly. Of course, if you start to have cramps — maybe he didn't, I don't know— what you do is ask for help from a physiotherapist and say, "I have a slight leg pain." Probably, I also did it in my career. If medical attention for cramps were allowed, there would be no problem, so this is the solution.

Sinner's Physical Condition

No, we definitely didn't talk about that in the locker room because we try not to talk about tennis. When I say "tennis in the locker room," I mean we don't watch a match and say, "Look at his backhand, it's terrible." At least I didn't discuss it with anyone.
Look, it's very difficult to play against him. To win a point, you need many shots. I try to win the points, so I hit many times. I don't know if there was anything else, but the points were very physical. It was also tough for me. He was suffering. Whenever I play against Novak, it's a bit the same. Novak often had physical problems against me. Were there other players? Well, I guess Rafa too, I had physical problems too. But it was the same story.

We played many shots because I also play like that. I don't think there's anything more to add. Again, when someone is good enough to play against Jannik in the baseline game because there is no other way to win, it will be a struggle for both. We saw that in Monte Carlo, he also had difficulties but won. Having difficulties doesn't prevent him from winning.

Use of Drop Shots in His Game

On clay, I always try to use many drop shots. It's a very peculiar shot because when you're having a bad day and your groundstrokes aren't working, the opponent takes position. You think: "Nothing is working, I'll try a drop shot," and usually, you're destroyed. When you're having a good day and your shots are working, that's when it's fun to hit some drop shots. Against Jannik, I thought it worked; I made quite a few. I won some points, lost others. He did the same. A drop shot is a very nice shot. When you win the point, you feel good about yourself. So, I like my drop shots in this tournament and also against Jannik.

His Level, Up to Top 3 Standard

In Rome, maybe. In Monte Carlo, not (smiling). I'm just giving my best. I think in the race, I'd probably be four places behind Zverev and the two guys (Sinner and Alcaraz). I'm just giving my best, and we'll see in the end. You know, the goal is undoubtedly to be in Turin. Before I thought: If I play well, I'm in Turin. I wasn't there last year. The goal is to try to be in Turin, try to maintain the level I reached in Madrid and Rome. In Madrid, I played well, but I lost to Cobolli, who played a great match. I'll try to repeat the same in Roland Garros. I'll try to play well on grass. If I finish third, I'll feel amazing this year. But we're far from that. 'Sascha' is playing wonderfully, in fact, much better than me in terms of results. I'm happy to be fourth for now.

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Medvedev da su opinión sobre la polémica de Sinner y los calambres