The fifth seed has French fan favourite Gilles Simon in his coaching team at Roland-Garros.
Daniil Medvedev banished the demons of a Paris first round exit last summer with a hard-fought 6-3, 6-4, 5-7, 6-3 victory over Dominik Koepfer on Monday night.
The world No.5 returns to the Roland-Garros second round for the third time, where he'll meet Serbia's Miomir Kecmanovic.
It appeared the 2021 US Open champion was unfairly receiving a chorus of jeers from the crowd as he entered Court Simonne-Mathieu. In fact, eagle-eyed fans had spotted Gilles Simon in the fifth seed's box and welcomed the French favourite with "gillouuuuu" ringing round.
Three previous meetings, all on hard courts, three wins in Medvedev's favour. The 28-year-old made a sublime start against Koepfer.
The pressure was on from the start with a series of disguised drop shots and booming flat forehands.
Koepfer was having to execute exquisite shots just to win points. The drop shot was utilised with frequent, deft brilliance as Medvedev toyed with his opponent, bringing the German forward, back, side to side with consummate ease to move a set ahead.
A flicked forehand pass down the line at 2-1 caught Koepfer off guard, which sparked the necessary break to move two sets up.
Koepfer kept probing, kept searching for answers, and was rewarded for his persistence when he drilled a forehand past Medvedev's reach to restore parity in the third set at 3-3.
Seeking a maiden top 10 win at a major, Koepfer pounced at 6-5, an arrowed backhand cross court was the telling shot to prolong the post-midnight battle.
Ten minutes of tense tennis kicked off the fourth set, and Medvedev emerged with a 2-0 lead. The close quarter exchanges prompted an exchange of breaks for 3-3 until a moment of magic from the fifth seed.
Medvedev struck a serve out wide, sauntered forwards and dinked a sumptuous backhand half volley to seize the initiative. He finally broke the Koepfer resolve with a majestic line-sweeping backhand on match point.
©Nicolas Gouhier / FFTThe drop shot kept Koepfer off balance, the drop shot was a menace, Medvedev connected with 23 in total.
The cat and mouse rallies up the court became increasingly frequent as the match reached a crescendo. The German finished with a 28-54 success rate at the net, while Medvedev achieved 16-30 at the net.
Stuck in tricky positions, the world No.5 escaped in style with 16 passing shots.
©Nicolas Gouhier / FFTHow it feels to prevail: "It was nice. If I'm done before midnight in a Grand Slam, there's something wrong," joked Medvedev. "But I'm fine with it. Winning was the most important thing today and it’s great that I could to it and qualify for the second round.
Getting through in four sets: "I was feeling great on the court. But at some point during the third set, I don't know why, he decided to play at his best level, to hit the lines, to run everywhere, to fight. If he had done it from the first rally, it would have been much more difficult for me. At least, he let me play two quiet sets. In the fourth, I said to myself: 'If he wants to win the match, then he won't be able to walk tomorrow.' I'm happy to have done it."
Roland-Garros goal: "My ambition is always to win, so I'll try to do it. I know that I'm really far from this level for now but my goal in a tournament is always to win and Roland-Garros is no exception so I'll try to do it."
The crowd support for Gilles Simon: "There were loads of 'Daniil' and 'Dominik', but it was 'Gillou' that got the most support. It was a bit weird but it's understandable. I think he had a good moment tonight. I hope he's even happier since I won this match. Hopefully he'll get French fans behind me. When you say 'Gilles,' think 'Daniil' a little bit!"
ROLAND-GARROS
19 May - 8 June 2025
