Daniil Medvedev and clay courts have a famously complicated relationship. The former world No. 1 has never hidden his ambivalence about the surface, and heading into Roland Garros, he has apparently found a solution to his clay court struggles: study Iga Swiatek. The problem was that Swiatek was sitting right next to him when he said it, and she had a comeback ready.

During a fan event hosted by their shared racket sponsor Tecnifibre, Medvedev confessed that his ultimate clay court study guide is the four-time French Open champion. “I look up to Iga’s matches. Especially if she plays before me, and that’s perfect because then I can see how she plays,” he said with a laugh. 

Swiatek, sitting alongside him, did not let the comment go unaswered. “Unfortunately, I play after you. That’s why 3 on 3,” she replied, a pointed reference to her losing the last three clay tournaments she has participated in, Stuttgart, Madrid, and Rome, an anomaly for the Pole on the surface. 

Medvedev doubled down rather than retreating. “That’s why it didn’t work out, you were not watching the right person playing on clay,” he said, turning the joke back around on Swiatek. The audience embraced it with glee, and the scene was a perfect illustration of the chemistry the duo shares both on and off the court. Next to each other, two of the most cerebral and sharp personalities in tennis, and they execute blows with a smile. 

Medvedev then acknowledged his clay limits, crediting Rome as proof he can compete on the surface. “No, but I just try to do my best. Sometimes I like clay, sometimes I don’t. Rome was good, and I hope in Roland Garros, I am gonna like it as well,” he added. 

He believes that Rome was good for his clay swing. At Monte-Carlo, the Russian was double bagelled for the first time in his career against Matteo Berrettini. From that horrific start, Medvedev reached the Italian Open semifinal. He lost to Jannik Sinner 6-2, 5-7, 6-4 in a match stretched over two days by rain. Medvedev tested Sinner more than any opponent in months. The Foro Italico is his most comfortable red-dirt venue by far, as his only clay title remains the 2023 Rome Masters.

Meanwhile, Iga enters Roland Garros as a semifinalist from last year, and the player Medvedev is thought to be taking as his clay court model. It’s yet to be seen if his analysis of her game will come in handy on five sets of Parisian clay over two weeks. 

Swiatek, for her part, is seeking redemption on her favorite surface, as she holds a 40-3 record at Roland Garros, a 93% win percentage. Last year, Aryna Sabalenka broke her 26-match win streak at the French Open, which dated back to her 2022 championship run. For the ‘Queen of Clay,’ the last clay-court title came in 2024 at the French Open. In 24 months, she has not been able to get her hands on another. She enters Roland Garros seeking to reclaim her clay dominance.