D. MEDVEDEV/I. Ivashka
6-2, 3-6, 6-1
THE MODERATOR: Another win. Just tell us a little bit, second set, you had a little bit of a letdown.
DANIIL MEDVEDEV: Yeah, very tough, not easy to play here. For everyone, for everyone. I feel like there are, let's say, 10 players that have the quality, I will not say which one, but to play good here because they have something in their game that can help them. Other than that everyone is struggling.
You can see a lot of matches 6-1 in one of the sets, and you look at it on TV and you're like the other one is not playing bad, just few moments. You miss few shots on important moments after 25-shot rally.
That kind of was the difference between second and third set. I cannot say I played much better in the third, but managed to be the one not missing after 25 shots but it was more him managed to just be a little bit better on the important moments.
Yeah, not easy, but not easy for everyone. Gonna try to continue fighting through this.
THE MODERATOR: Questions.
Q. Obviously your next match you're playing someone you know quite well. What is it about that sort of matchup that comes to your mind? Do you have to go back and watch tape, or is it like you know each other too well by now?
DANIIL MEDVEDEV: Yeah, I think we know each other very well. Every match against such a top player is a new start. Every match he tries to adapt, I try to adapt. I remember he did very well in Turin to beat me. Like he played, first of all, he was serving great, so that's the key for him. I think he's a little bit less important here in Indian Wells probably. But I'm sure we're gonna have a lot of rallies, lots of rallies. It's gonna come down to who makes, again after like 20 shots, the best shot to try to put your opponent off balance, which is not easy to do here.
So he's coming back, he's playing better and better. I think he's not yet at where he was when he got injured, but every new match against a top player is an opportunity for him to bring back this level. So I'm gonna have to try to play my best, and postpone it for at least next tournament.
Q. You are so articulate in English. Here in California, if someone knows a second language, it's a major accomplishment. I know you know at least three with Russian, French, English. A little bit of a different question. Can you just talk about those three different languages, like what their differences are, their expressiveness.
DANIIL MEDVEDEV: Yeah, it's actually a funny question. First of all, I do think they are completely different, all the three. Russian, I cannot talk much about Russian, because I was born with it. So I speak it all my life. It's not something I learned. So I guess it's a very tough language, but for me, it's easy, you know.
English I learned when I was young. I mean, it's the most important language in the world, because right now I feel like almost all the countries speak English. All the people, all the young people, because that's the way to communicate with each other in modern era, let's say, like this.
So I'm really happy that I can express myself well. I feel like I get lost rarely.
French, yeah, I'm really happy I managed to pick it up, because it's not easy. I didn't know any word in French until I was 17 years old. I knew I would be moving to France so I started to learn it a little bit when I was 17, and came with a really low base but maybe could understand what was the topic about. That helped me to learn it. Very tricky language, because, I mean, it's very tough.
In Russia, we literally, like probably like in English, even more, we literally pronounce everything that is written on the paper. In French, half of the letters are not pronounced. I had to get used to it.
Right now I feel I can speak fluently in all three languages, and sometimes I don't even know which language I think in my mind. Probably, I have not that many dreams, but I probably dream in Russian. But I can think sometimes different languages.
Same on court. I don't know how I decide sometimes, you know, I get angry. Sometimes I can speak French, sometimes English, sometimes Russian. I have no idea how I decide which one. Just comes by itself.
Q. I just want to go back a bit to the question of strings. I know you talked about it a little in your past press conference. I was just wondering how are the new strings different from the previous ones? Maybe they are thicker or thinner? Also, did you have to make any adjustments in terms of balancing of the racquet, string tension, in order to adapt to the conditions?
DANIIL MEDVEDEV: Yeah, I will try to answer all of the questions.
So basically, strings, I will be honest, I don't know, like, there are some players that are capable of changing the tension by 0.1 kilos, tapping the racquet like this, yeah, that's better. You give me one, and 20 kilos, one at 25, I probably won't feel the difference.
That's particularity of different players. I don't feel much difference. I don't know exactly how the strings are different, but they are softer, and they are called Soft, because before it was Razor Cold. Now it's Razor Soft.
I felt straightaway that when the ball touches the strings, they are softer so the ball can go kind of more, like, from a trampoline from the racquet, so go faster and easy power without having to do it by myself.
I didn't adjust anything in the racquet, so continue to stay with the same one.
What else? Didn't adjust the tension, so I had to adjust for sure my sensations, in a way, because, well, if I would continue to hit the same, the balls would be just flying out.
Yeah, the most funny thing is, as I say, when something doesn't go your way, which was the case in Australia, even if I played not too bad, straightaway doubts. I'm really happy, and I was really happy that I managed to win three next tournaments playing great. And, yeah, that proved that these strings are good.
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