Glimpses of the old Medvedev

Is this the season where Daniil becomes a top player again... or has that ship already sailed?

Well, we saw some good signs at the end of last year. Still, we have to keep in mind that there were also quite a few matches that were a bit more questionable - something that rarely happened with prime Medvedev. He spent his off-season doing some charity work; the biggest contribution was losing to a rank 500 player, Suresh, in an exhibition in India (great confidence boost for the kid). Yes... I remember Daniil's struggle against Thai player Samrej in the Australian Open as well - shocking stuff. Anyway, that's in the past now ;)

Fucsovics had a pretty good 2025. A very clean run to the title in Winston-Salem, getting married, and enjoying a nice vacation. He is great at beating the players he should beat, and we can expect a good effort and a professional attitude from him, no matter what the match or tournament may be. His balanced game and experience make his floor level high, but the lack of any standout attribute or strength limits him from truly challenging the elite players. Fortunately for him, it has to be asked... is Medvedev an elite player these days?

As the 5-1 H2H might suggest, this is a rather decent matchup for Medvedev. While Fucsovics has some things on paper that could potentially bother Medvedev (mainly his slice and ability to finish points at the net), he still is not able to repeat it well enough to really bother Medvedev. There are no huge weapons to use over and over, or the craftiness of someone like Moutet that can force Medvedev to generate himself and drive him crazy. Putting it simply, he is perhaps just a bit too... average. Also, I prefer Medvedev against the "older generation" that he has played a lot in the past (and won)... he seems to struggle against the younger players a lot more. Having said all this, Medvedev will for certain be a favorite here... so we need to ask ourselves: Is Fucsovic's consistency and overall balance enough to make this somewhat competitive?