Daniil Medvedev welcomes bigger draws in Madrid and Rome, suggests they benefit players like Jan-Lennard Struff

Daniil Medvedev has no complaints with the introduction of bigger draws at the Madrid Open and the Italian Open this year.

Medvedev is currently in Rome to contest the ongoing Masters 1000 event. In a recent press-conference, the World No. 3 was asked to share his thoughts on the ATP discarding the original 64-player format and introducing a 96-player main draw in Madrid and Rome from 2023, similar to that in Indian Wells and Miami.

Medvedev admitted that the new two-week-long format puts top players such as himself at a disadvantage, due to an added round.

“I said it in Madrid. I think it puts less advantage for top players. The less matches you have, the easier it is to win the tournament. That's why for top four players is even easier to win. You have only four matches. I think for top eight, top 16 players, it's a disadvantage,” he said.

Daniil Medvedev went on to state, however, that he supports the decision given the bigger picture. He believes that the new format allows more lower ranked players to compete for the title.

“Personally, I like it. I think it's good for all the players. It gives more opportunities for players because it's a bigger draw,” he said.

The former World No. 1 brought up the case of Jan-Lennard Struff, who created history last week at the Madrid Open by becoming the first-ever lucky loser to make it to a Masters 1000 final. Struff subsequently reached a career-high ranking of World No. 28.

Medvedev stated that the German would not even have had the chance to compete in the qualifiers if the draw had been restricted to 64 players.

“Struff, I don't know what his ranking in the acceptance list was. With the previous draw maybe, he would not get in qualies. The same: the smaller the draw, the less chances of retirement,” the 27-year-old said. “Maybe he wouldn't get in lucky loser, would not be in his first final of a 1000, would not be in his highest ranking right now of his career.”

Daniil Medvedev, who himself lost to qualifier and eventual semifinalist Aslan Karatsev in the fourth round, then reiterated that the change is beneficial for players and good for tennis.

“It's more advantage for all-around top 200 players. I think it's great for tennis,” he said.

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Daniil Medvedev in the hunt for his maiden claycourt title at 2023 Italian Open

A runner-up finish against Dominic Thiem at 2019 Barcelona Open is Medvedev's best claycourt result

Daniil Medvedev has achieved phenomenal success in his career so far. The Russian has collected an impressive 19 career titles at 19 different tournaments, including the 2021 US Open.

In 2023 itself, Medvedev has featured in five consecutive finals and lifted four titles, including the Miami Open. Despite his rich resume though, a claycourt title has eluded the 27-year-old.

He will be hoping to make a strong run at the Italian Open as he looks to fill the void. Being the third seed, Daniil Medvedev has received an opening-round bye; he will commence his campaign against the winner of Emil Ruusuvuori vs Ugo Humbert on Friday, May 12.