After going title-less in 2024 and watching his trademark consistency slip, Daniil Medvedev hadn’t exactly launched into 2025 the way he hoped. Things took an especially hard turn between Wimbledon and the US Open, when the Russian shockingly dropped five of eight matches during that stretch. And that’s exactly why Medvedev now feels he has no choice but to take whatever opportunities come his way.

In a recent interview with Championat, Medvedev opened up about the drop in form that led to him falling to 13th in the rankings after starting the year in 5th. It’s forcing him to approach the tour like a player grinding for points again.

“Of course, I would play the Australian Open right away. But when you’re 13 in the world, there’s no other choice. Now the situation is different than in previous seasons, so I had to play Brisbane, but I am glad,” he said.

Instead of kicking his season off in Melbourne like he would have wanted, the Russian is now slated to compete at the upcoming Brisbane International in the first week of January. After failing to defend his points at several tournaments, including the Australian Open and Wimbledon this year, Medvedev is taking no chances in 2026.

But his decision to participate didn’t come down to just racking up points. “In terms of preparation… I have a new team, so the approach is different anyway,” he added. “And you can look at the fruits of all this only during the season – say, in six months, in a year, when all this will be visible.

After a string of poor results culminating in an emotional meltdown during his loss to Benjamin Bonzi at the US Open, the former world No. 1 realized he needed to “try something new.” And that “something new” meant parting ways with longtime coach Gilles Cervara and appointing Thomas Johansson and Rohan Goetzke.

Under the duo’s guidance, Medvedev experienced a late-season resurgence during the Asian swing. He even won his first and only trophy of the year at Almaty, in an emotional triumph that snapped an 882-day-long trophy drought.

Along with Almaty came a pair of semifinal runs in Beijing and Shanghai that helped propel his year-end ranking to 13th (he was languishing in 18th place after the US Open). Although Medvedev missed out on qualifying for the ATP Finals with a finish that was his lowest since 2018, he’s showing signs of progress.

“I just hope I can play at least the tennis I showed at the end of this year because it was good. But I still know that I can play much better than even I played at the end of the year, in terms of stability,” he added when discussing his goals for the upcoming season.

But that progress didn’t come easy. The 29-year-old has also been open about the challenges he’s faced behind the scenes, especially when it came to finding a new coach. After ending his eight-year partnership with Cervara, he began searching for someone who fits his style and mentality. The process, though straightforward, wasn’t simple.

Daniil Medvedev reveals the biggest hurdle in his coaching hunt

After several weeks of searching, Daniil Medvedev finally settled on Thomas Johansson and Rohan Goetzke as his new coaches. Ultimately, the real question for many fans was what led him to choose this particular duo.

Medvedev thus explained that he started by calling many different coaches to hear how they viewed him as a player. “I primarily wanted to know their opinion of me as a player,” he said, noting that the first step was simply finding out whether the coaches were “available and willing to participate.”

According to Medvedev, that part was the most difficult. ““Many weren’t available or declined for various reasons. With those who agreed, we discussed their vision of my game and how they envisioned working with me. That’s basically it. And for the moment, my choice has fallen on Thomas [Johansson] and Rohan [Götzke].”

And his choices make sense considering their experience. Johansson, a former world No. 7 and Australian Open champion, has coached top players like Caroline Wozniacki and David Goffin and brings deep knowledge of the sport. Goetzke, known for his work in academies, has worked with Richard Krajicek and Mario Ancic and headed the IMG Academy in Florida from 2012 to 2019.

Now, as Daniil Medvedev approaches his 30th birthday in February, his biggest target for 2026 is clear: performing better at the Grand Slams. And whether he can make another big run at the Australian Open, where he has played in three finals, remains to be seen.