Gilles Cervara: Daniil Medvedev has fallen behind significantly in preparation for RG

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Russian tennis star Daniil Medvedev has returned to the practice courts as he hopes to be in perfect condition when the time comes for the French Open.

Medvedev, ranked at No. 3 in the world, had been expected to kick off his clay season at the Monte Carlo Masters but he was withdrawn from the tournament after testing positive for the coronavirus.

"He has been able to work for a week. The first few days we kept a close eye on the reaction of his heart to effort, the reaction of his lungs, we were very attentive to his health sensations – headaches, difficulty in exertion – in order to adjust our training demand. You don’t pick up like that overnight after a week off, especially after contracting a little-known virus," Medvedev's coach Gilles Cervara told Tennis Majors.

Medvedev hasn't yet played on clay 

When asked how far has Medvedev fallen behind in his preparation for the French Open, Cervara said: "It is significant. When you see Stefanos Tsitsipas who has played 10 matches and the certainty he has created by winning nine (by winning in Monte Carlo, (reaching the) final in Barcelona, ed.), he is not the only one. The extent of this delay is unknown. I shouldn’t compare us to other players, we just have to focus on our own goals, day by day, to get to the end of the road. I can’t be ahead of my player.”

Stunningly, Medvedev has never won a match at the French Open as he has four first round exits. 

"We’ll do Madrid and Rome. These tournaments will reveal things that will allow us to discuss and choose what will happen just before Roland Garros. For our training and possibly to play another tournament. He has a lot of room for improvement on clay. He’s never won a match at Roland Garros. We’ve been seen joking about it before, which is good for not letting the pressure get to us, but I don’t feel like joking much anymore," Cervara added.

from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/3nDvEUn

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