Medvedev Says Balance Key as He Adapts Game for Clay

02 April 2023, US, Miami Gardens: Russian tennis player Daniil Medvedev celebrates after defeating Italy's Jannik SInner during their men's final match of the Miami Open at Hard Rock Stadium. (dpa)
02 April 2023, US, Miami Gardens: Russian tennis player Daniil Medvedev celebrates after defeating Italy's Jannik SInner during their men's final match of the Miami Open at Hard Rock Stadium. (dpa)
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Medvedev Says Balance Key as He Adapts Game for Clay

02 April 2023, US, Miami Gardens: Russian tennis player Daniil Medvedev celebrates after defeating Italy's Jannik SInner during their men's final match of the Miami Open at Hard Rock Stadium. (dpa)
02 April 2023, US, Miami Gardens: Russian tennis player Daniil Medvedev celebrates after defeating Italy's Jannik SInner during their men's final match of the Miami Open at Hard Rock Stadium. (dpa)

Daniil Medvedev will head into the Monte Carlo Masters hoping to strike the right balance as the world number four looks to tweak his game for the claycourt swing without compromising on the style that has delivered four titles in 2023.

Medvedev has won 18 of his 19 titles, including the 2021 US Open, on hardcourts, the only exception coming at the Mallorca Open when he triumphed on grass the same year.

He has been in red-hot form this season having triumphed in Rotterdam, Doha, Dubai and Miami but the 27-year-old knows clay presents a different challenge for his game.

"I definitely have to change my game because my strokes are too flat and clay doesn't let the ball go through the court as much," Medvedev, who plays Lorenzo Sonego or Ugo Humbert first in the ATP 1000 tournament, said.

"My opponents can use those (shots against me).

"At the same time, you can't change what you do in nine months or a year drastically, so I have to find a good balance where I still play my game, with a little change, with some shots in the right moment."

Despite not being the biggest fan of clay, Medvedev reached the Monte Carlo semi-finals and Barcelona final in 2019 and the Russian knows winning a title on the surface would boost his confidence before the French Open.

He would much rather be playing on hardcourts though.

"I wish we could continue on hard, but I understand that there are different surfaces on Tour and that is good because some people are better on clay, some on hard, some on grass," Medvedev said.

"It's good to have different surfaces, I think that's good for the sport."



FIFA Chief Infantino Praises Impact of Expanded Tournaments in Speech to Asian Football Group

A video recording of FIFA President Gianni Infantino delivering his speech is displayed during the 35th Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Congress in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 12 April 2025. (EPA)
A video recording of FIFA President Gianni Infantino delivering his speech is displayed during the 35th Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Congress in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 12 April 2025. (EPA)
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FIFA Chief Infantino Praises Impact of Expanded Tournaments in Speech to Asian Football Group

A video recording of FIFA President Gianni Infantino delivering his speech is displayed during the 35th Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Congress in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 12 April 2025. (EPA)
A video recording of FIFA President Gianni Infantino delivering his speech is displayed during the 35th Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Congress in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 12 April 2025. (EPA)

FIFA president Gianni Infantino praised the impact of expanded tournaments in the development of soccer around the world in a video message to the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Congress on Saturday.

Speaking from the United States, host of this year's Club World Cup which will feature 32 teams in June and July instead of the previous seven, Infantino addressed the 46 member associations gathered in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

“Opportunities to face opponents from different continents don’t come along too often and that is something that we have been trying to change at FIFA,” said Infantino, who has pushed for bigger and new tournaments since taking his position in 2016 in a bid to generate more revenue for the organization’s 211 member associations.

Asia will have four representatives at the Club World Cup: Al-Ain of the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia’s Al-Hilal, Ulsan HD of South Korea and Japan’s Urawa Reds.

“In total, players from more nations will represent their respective countries at this tournament than at all of the FIFA World Cups combined since 1930,” added Infantino. “It is further proof in our desire to make football truly global.”

While there has been some criticism of expanded tournaments in Europe because of the increased demands placed on players, AFC president Sheikh Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa said Infantino had Asia’s support.

“This is a competition that we have supported as a confederation and a competitive opportunity which our members, and their clubs, have wanted,” the AFC president said.

The United States will also co-host the 2026 World Cup along with Mexico and Canada in the first tournament to feature 48 national teams, an increase from 32 in 2022.

“Some teams will break new ground in reaching that competition as a result, not only of the move to 48 teams with eight or even nine Asian teams now being able to qualify, but also a product of the tireless work being done by you all,” added Infantino.

Infantino did not mention Thursday’s proposal by Alejandro Dominguez, the president of South American soccer’s ruling body CONMEBOL, that the 2030 World Cup, which will be hosted by six nations, feature 64 teams in order to mark the centennial celebration of the tournament.

In March, FIFA said it would look into the South American proposal when it was first broached by a Uruguayan official. Uruguay hosted the first World Cup in 1930.

The 1930 World Cup, won by the host Uruguay side, featured 13 teams which did not have to pre-qualify — seven from South America, four from Europe and two from North America. Many European teams did not participate because of the difficulty of traveling to South America during the Great Depression.