Medvedev's firm stance regarding changes to the ATP calendar

Carlos Navarro - 21 Oct 2026 | 13:16
Daniil Medvedev ATP ATP Almaty 2026

What does Daniil think about the changes proposed by the ATP regarding its calendar? Does he support giving more importance to the major tournaments? His response is not in line with the general opinion.

Go to comments section Preferir Puntodebreak en Google
Medvedev in favor of the current ATP calendar.

Daniil Medvedev is back in action this week at the ATP Almaty 2026, where he enters as the main favorite and defending champion. The Russian tennis player finds in Kazakh lands a second home, practically: this tournament was the one that broke his title drought of over two years last season. The Moscow native defeated Corentin Moutet in the final and opened his arms to a 2.0 version of his tennis that wouldn’t end up having too much staying power, but did prevent a more dramatic drop in the ATP ranking after months of struggling to string results together.

This season, the Russian arrives in Almaty with one goal: to add more weight to his ATP Finals candidacy. Currently the sixth-best racket of the season, repeating his title would lift him one position higher in the Race, above Flavio Cobolli, adding more than 200 extra points from the current cut-off line. However, Daniil dismisses the idea that his presence in the Kazakh city is solely about the Masters Cup: "There are many reasons, it’s not just about Turin. Firstly, my wife and I decided to come back because it’s a fantastic place for kids, I have a commitment to this tournament, and it wouldn’t make sense to skip Almaty and not skip Vienna, which would mean I'd go home for only three days, and there’s no incentive in that. Yes, I am a bit tired, but it’s not the first time in my career that I am", said Daniil with his usual sarcasm as he arrives ready for action.

Medvedev supports the ATP in upcoming calendar changes

The Russian also didn’t hold back on a topic that has raised a lot of controversy in the locker room: the calendar reforms that the ATP has pushed in recent seasons, increasing the number of points awarded at the Masters 1000, adding one more starting in 2028, raising their importance through prize money and points distribution (from 2028, the three worst results in these tournaments cannot be replaced by 500 or 250 tournaments) and dedicating exclusive weeks in the calendar at the expense of the number of lower-category tournaments currently held. Is Medvedev in favor of these changes? The Russian, known for going against the general consensus, has a clear opinion.

"I could give you a very long answer", he begins his argument, "but I will try not to elaborate too much. I have always been in favor of giving more importance to the biggest tournaments because the fact that we can play up to 30 tournament weeks in a year is not ideal. I think it’s good news that we give more importance to the Grand Slams and the Masters 1000, that we play these tournaments and see how things go with the rest", the Russian sincerely announced to the press from Almaty, words that contrast with the number of tournaments he has played recently (he was champion in Hangzhou and is now playing another 250 category tournament, all within just a month of competition). It remains to be seen if, once this new distribution is official, Daniil maintains his stance despite the fatigue... only time will tell.

This is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Medvedev y una firme postura con respecto a los cambios en el calendario de la ATP