Tennis professionals from both the men’s and women’s sides rarely communicate with one another, although it does happen. That is why it always results in a memorable conversation.
And, most recently, ATP World No. 2 Daniil Medvedev and WTA World No. 11 Iga Swiatek teamed together to give tennis fans a special surprise.
Notably, the pair went live on Instagram under the name of Tecnifibre, their shared racquet sponsor.
Swiatek also gave Medvedev a new nickname and questioned him about his unorthodox playing style. The 25-year-old Russian responded by explaining how he came up with the contentious strategy.
Surprisingly, the 20-year-old Polish pro likened Medvedev’s backhand to a pretzel.
For this he told, “It’s going to be one of my many nicknames.”
Daniil Medvedev explains how he created this unusual method
Daniil Medvedev, the reigning US Open winner, has wowed the tennis world with his unusual approach.
However, few people were aware of the Russian’s playing style’s origins. Not until he told Iga Swiatek, the French Open champion from last year.
“When I was young, I was really uncoordinated. So that’s how I was playing; everyone was hitting strong at me, I was doing lobs.
“And I have nothing much to it,” Medvedev told Swiatek during the Tecnifibre Instagram Live.
The 25-year-old also explained how his desire to win developed his unusual manner into a strategy.
He had no idea that the antics he began to upset his opponents would one day be used to defeat World No. 1 Novak Djokovic in a Grand Slam final.
“I was not doing amazing technically, but I always wanted to win,” Medvedev continued.
“So I tried to find the shots that would annoy my opponents because they were better than me technically, physically better.
“But I needed to win, so I think that’s how my technique developed.”
Both Medvedev and Swiatek have qualified for the ATP and WTA Finals, respectively, at the end of the year. However, they will compete in one or two other tour-level events before that.
Medvedev will also be looking forward to defending his season-ending championships title as a defending champion. Swiatek, on the other hand, is looking forward to making her WTA Finals debut.
Overall, the 2021 season was a triumph for both Medvedev and Swiatek. Let’s see if they can close it out on a similar note.
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