Struggling Daniil Medvedev dismisses retirement talk, vows to keep fighting

After winning five titles in 2023 including the Indian Wells and Italian Open ATP Masters events, Medvedev looked like he would kick on last year as he started the campaign by finishing runner-up to Jannik Sinner at the Australian Open while he was also a finalist at Indian Wells Open.

But his form dropped off during the remainder of the campaign as he failed to reach another final, although he did make the semi-final at Wimbledon and last four at the US Open.

He finished the 2024 ATP Tour with a 46â-21 record and this season hasn't exactly started well as he is 2-2, having lost in the second round at Melbourne Park against 19-year-old qualifier Learner Tien while he was also stunned by another qualifier in Mattia Bellucci at the Rotterdam Open.

There had been talk that Medvedev is starting to lose his passion for tennis and could retire, but the former World No 1 has no intention of retiring and the fact that he is "still winning a lot of money" certainly helps.

"I love tennis and I still win a lot of money," he said during his post-match press conference. "That's not going to happen. I'll keep playing as long as I can.

"If I drop out of the top hundred, I'll have to look at it again. But that's probably not going to happen. I'm pretty sure I'll come back strong enough. And that's it."

Medvedev is currently at No 7 in the ATP Rankings and there is no danger of him slipping out of the top 50 any time soon, but the 28-year-old has not won back-to-back matches on the ATP Tour since the Shanghai Masters last October.

The younger generation is also catching up as the 28-year-old is the third oldest player in the top 25 with only Novak Djokovic (37) and Grigor Dimitrov (33) above 30.

But the money keeps rolling in, as he says, as last year he earned $5,615,756 while he has already collected $122,880 so far this campaign (excluding Rotterdam).

His career tally sits at $45,249,858, which puts him sixth on the all-time list for most career prize-money earnings.

There is no doubt he will add a few more million to his tally before he slips out of the top 100 in the ATP Rankings and "has a look" at his future.

Medvedev is set to return to action in a fortnight as he will play in the Qatar Open before taking part in the Dubai Tennis Championships.

READ MORE: Italian qualifier Mattia Bellucci upsets Daniil Medvedev In Rotterdam