Daniil Medvedev said his Indian Wells semi-final win over Carlos Alcaraz on Saturday would prove nothing more than a temporary setback for the Spaniard, and that he and Jannik Sinner were playing at a totally different level from the rest of the tour.
Medvedev beat the world number one 6-3 7-6(3) to end his 16-match winning start to the year and ruin the seven-times Grand Slam champion's bid for a third Indian Wells title.
After being overshadowed for so long by the "Big Three" of Roger Federer, Rafa Nadal and Novak Djokovic, the 30-year-old Medvedev and his peers have found it just as tough against the dominant duo of Alcaraz and Sinner, who have won 10 of the last 11 Grand Slams.
Asked if Saturday's win showed the young guns were not completely out of reach, Medvedev said he was too old to be thinking about catching them.
"I don't care too much about these things, because I'm already, first of all, a bit too old. I'm not Next Gen anymore," Medvedev, who will play Sinner in the final, told reporters.
"I had a tough year last year, so even more perspective now that I need to do my best, that's it. Jannik and Carlos are far better than all of us. Only one match we can beat them ... they are so good. They are so much better than us.
"Djokovic, Federer, Nadal were so much better than us. But Djokovic, Nadal, and Jannik and Carlos are probably also better than all the ones that were there before. They would struggle against them. It is what it is."
Medvedev said that while the 22-year-old Alcaraz would probably be the favorite every time they meet, he had to go into their matches thinking he can win.
"Maybe I play 10 matches against Carlos, probably I'm going to lose more than I'm going to win," he added.
"But whenever I go on court, I need to believe in myself, I need to do my best, and try to win as much as I can."
