Despite pushing each other to produce top-notch tennis whenever they meet on-tour, Novak Djokovic and Daniil Medvedev share utmost respect for each off the court. During the trophy presentation at the US Open, the Russian openly admitted that Djokovic is the greatest men’s player of all time, according to him.

Even the Serbian star always admired Medvedev for constantly pushing his boundaries with respect to tactics. At the Rolex Paris Masters final, Djokovic successfully implemented the serve-and-volley, a tactic that was implemented by players like Rafael Nadal previously against the Russian.

Daniil Medvedev writes a funny caption as he congratulates Novak Djokovic on winning Rolex Paris Masters 2021

Talking about Medvedev, post Paris victory, Djokovic was glad for the ‘budding’ rivalry between the both of them and appreciated the fact that Medvedev’s game forces him to play differently.

Now, the world no.2 took to Instagram to congratulate Djokovic on winning his 37th Masters 1000 title and wrote, “I think we don’t need to practice together anymore”. 

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The 20-time Grand Slam champion was quick to respond as he posed a question to Medvedev, “That means you are canceling the practice in Torino on Thursday?”. 

Even before the start of Paris Masters, both the players got together Mouratoglou Tennis Academy for a practice session. The duo faced each other in three important finals this year and it was Djokovic who won two crucial contests out of them.

While Djokovic was going for the Calendar Slam at the US Open, Medvedev produced flawless tennis and asked more questions of the Serb and forced errors out of him.

Djokovic found a tactic to steer through Daniil Medvedev at Paris

Despite the fans at Arthur Ashe stadium vocally supporting Djokovic, he couldn’t figure out a way past Medvedev, who stood like an unbreakable wall between the Serb and his chances of making history.

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However, the championship match at Rolex Paris Masters was proof enough that the world no.1 always figures out a way to come out of trouble when pushed into a corner.

Not that he didn’t use it before, but Djokovic’s frequent appearances at the net put off Medvedev as he had to cover a lot of ground to reach the ball due to his deep return stance.

Out of the ten instances where the duo have faced each other on the ATP tour, Novak Djokovic has now won six while the Russian took the remaining four. Along with a budding intense rivalry on cards for the future, both Medvedev and Djokovic are well in line to maintain a strong friendship off the court.

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