Background and career
Daniil Sergeyevich Medvedev (born 11 February 1996) is a Russian professional tennis player. He was formerly ranked as the world No. 1 in men's singles by the ATP. Medvedev has won 25 ATP Tour-level singles titles, including the 2021 US Open and 2020 ATP Finals. Medvedev made his ATP Tour main draw debut at the 2015 Kremlin Cup. In 2018, Medvedev won his first three ATP Tour singles titles. He had a breakthrough year in 2019, making his top 10 debut and reaching six consecutive tournament finals, including the US Open. In 2020 Medvedev won the ATP Finals, defeating the top three players in the world en route to the title. In 2021, he contested his second and third major finals, and won the US Open to claim his first major title and deny Novak Djokovic a Grand Slam. He also helped the Russian Davis Cup team secure victory in 2021. In 2022, shortly after reaching a fourth major final at the Australian Open, Medvedev became ATP world No. 1 for the first time. He was the first man outside the Big Four to attain the No. 1 ranking in nearly 20 years, the third Russian man to do so after Yevgeny Kafelnikov and Marat Safin, and the 27th man overall. Medvedev reached a fifth and sixth major final, at the 2023 US Open and 2024 Australian Open, but suffered from inconsistent form, at times inside the top 5 and at times out of the top 10. Medvedev won his first title on clay at the Italian Open in 2023. Following this title, Medvedev did not win another tournament for over two years. After a dire 2025 season in which he only won one match at the majors, he parted ways with longtime coach Gilles Cervara. He finally ended his title drought after 882 days at the 2025 Almaty Open, under the guidance of new coaches Thomas Johansson and Rohan Goetzke. He has won three titles in 2026.
Daniil Medvedev was born in Moscow to Sergey Medvedev and Olga Medvedeva. Daniil's father, a computer engineer, developed his own business of building materials sales, from the mid-1980s to the early 2010s. Medvedev has two older sisters named Julia and Elena, 12 and 8 years his senior, respectively. When Daniil was six years old, his mother noticed an advertisement for group tennis lessons at the pool where he was taking swimming lessons. His father encouraged him to enroll. Medvedev's first tennis teacher was Ekaterina Kryuchkova, a former coach of professional tennis player Vera Zvonareva among others. Daniil's other childhood activities besides sport included harpsichord and guitar lessons. Medvedev studied physics and maths at a specialized school before graduating early and enrolling in economics and commerce at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations. He later dropped out to focus on tennis. He then switched to the Russian State University of Physical Education, Sport, Youth and Tourism, where he received his diploma as coach. With his family he moved to Antibes, France where he trained at the tennis academy. His parents have been living in France as retirees since.
As a result of living mostly overseas after turning 18, Medvedev can speak French and English fluently, besides his native Russian. He is a fan of FC Bayern Munich. He is also a fan of the Cincinnati Reds. Medvedev married his then–girlfriend Daria Chernyshkova, a Moscow State University graduate and former juniors tennis player, in Moscow on 12 September 2018. On 14 October 2022, they announced the birth of their daughter, Alisa. On 7 January 2025, they announced the birth of their second daughter, Vika. His best friend and fellow tennis player, Andrey Rublev, is the godfather to Alisa. In September 2019, he credited his marriage for the improvement of his tennis results: "Before I made a proposal, I had been on the 65th place in the ranking, and then in ten months I've won two major tournaments and entered the top 10. We have significantly rebuilt our life, we work for each other. I earn [money], and Daria helps me to earn more". In March 2026, following his participation in the 2026 Dubai Tennis Championships, Daniil Medvedev was temporarily stranded in Dubai along with his family and fellow tennis players Andrey Rublev and Karen Khachanov due to airspace closures amid escalating conflict in the Middle East. The disruption followed Iranian missile and drone attacks across the Gulf region, which led to temporary closure of airspace in the United Arab Emirates and widespread travel uncertainty. Medvedev later travelled to the United States to take part in the 2026 BNP Paribas Open via Oman after restrictions were eased.
Medvedev played his first junior match in July 2009 at the age of 13 at a grade 4 tournament in Estonia. In December 2010, he won his first junior title as a qualifier at just his third tournament in Ust-Kamenogarsk, Kazakhstan, a grade 5 carpet tournament.
In 2012–2013 seasons, the young Russian had significant results on the junior circuit as he won six titles between October 2012 and July 2013, which included four consecutive titles. He made his junior Grand Slam debut at 2013 Junior Wimbledon, where he won his first round match against Hong Seong-chan but lost in the second round to 2nd seed Nikola Milojević. That tournament was his first time on a grass court. At the 2013 Junior US Open, he went into the tournament seeded 10th and made the third round where he lost to Johan Tatlot. Medvedev reached his career-high junior ranking of world No. 13 at the beginning of 2014 and went into the 2014 Junior Australian Open seeded 8th. He ended his junior career after a first round loss at 2014 Junior Wimbledon. Medvedev ended his junior career with an overall win–loss record of 109–43 and wins over several future stars including Alexander Zverev and Reilly Opelka. Junior Grand Slam results – singles: Australian Open: 3R (2014) French Open: 3R (2014) Wimbledon: 2R (2013) US Open: 3R (2013)
Medvedev made his ATP main draw debut at the 2015 Kremlin Cup, partnering Aslan Karatsev in the doubles event. The two defeated Aliaksandr Bury and Denis Istomin in the first round but were defeated by Radu Albot and František Čermák in the second round.
