“Medvedev, Rublev and Khachanov are ready for the Melbourne marathon”

The Australian Open starts in Melbourne on Monday. Coach of the Russian national team, winner of the Kremlin Cup 2008 Igor Kunitsyn in an interview with a Kommersant correspondent Evgeny Fedyakov explained in which case it would be easier for two-time Australian Open finalist Daniil Medvedev to claim the title, commented on the problems that Andrei Rublev experienced at the start of the season, and assessed the chances of other Russian players.

– At the last two Australian Opens, Daniil Medvedev reached the final. It is difficult to repeat such a result, let alone surpass it, even from the point of view of probability theory. On what basis can one count on Medvedev’s successful performance in Melbourne?

– Unlike last year, in December Daniil managed to go through a full-fledged pre-season training, which is very good. Judging by the recent tournament in Adelaide, Medvedev is in good condition. True, for the favorites of the Grand Slam tournaments, it always matters how much effort is expended during the first week. If you start hard, with difficult five-set matches, especially in the hot weather that happens in Melbourne, sooner or later it can affect. Therefore, it is very important for Medvedev to go through the first three laps as easily as possible. In this case, he will definitely claim the title.

– Did you see his first rival, the American Marcos Giron, in the case?

Yes, and not just once. He has no obvious weaknesses, but he doesn’t have any special blows either. And Chiron is unlikely to be able to surprise Medvedev with tactical surprises. In general, for our tennis player, this is an ideal option in order to calmly start the tournament. It all depends on Daniel himself, you just need to play to your strengths.

– Andrey Rublev lost the first matches in tournaments held in Adelaide twice in January. You do not rule out that he is psychologically affected by the situation with the technical sponsor Nike, with which it was not possible to reach an agreement on the extension of a full-fledged contract?

– There are no trifles in big-time sports, so certain psychological nuances cannot be ruled out here. Especially considering that Andrey has been performing at Nike since his junior years – as long as I remember him. However, I would not dramatize Andrei’s defeat in Adelaide. At first, he lost a little to the dangerous Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut, who has vast experience. And then Thanasi Kokkinakisu, who always performs well in his hometown and that’s where he took his only title last year. In addition, at the first January tournaments, the Australians always have an advantage in terms of acclimatization, which is gradually fading away by the beginning of the Australian Open. Therefore, I think that the match of the first round against Dominic Thiem should be normal for Andrey. The Austrian is a great master, but he plays quite rhythmically, rarely runs to the net, and this style is convenient for Rublev. It is no coincidence that the score of their personal meetings on hard is 3:1 in his favor.

– Karen Khachanov doesn’t have any particularly dangerous opponents at first, but in the third round he will face the American Francis Tiafoe, who, like him, reached the semi-finals at the last US Open. Will the Russian be able to get far enough along the grid?

– I think that all three of our strongest players – Medvedev, Rublev and Khachanov – are ready for the Melbourne marathon. Karen has played two quarter-finals in Adelaide and is in good form. When Khachanov serves well, he is able to beat many. Especially in five-set matches where physical condition matters more. Statistics show that Karen plays very well in protracted meetings. As for Tiafoe, they met twice at Wimbledon, and both times Khachanov won. And for the first time he did it, losing the first two sets.

– Aslan Karatsev, after an extremely unsuccessful last season, reached the semi-finals in the Indian Pune. Can we count on his return to the top twenty this year?

A lot will depend on the draws, especially in the coming months. On Monday, after Karen loses 250 points for last year’s victory in Sydney, he will drop into the ninth decade, and if he can not “shoot” in Melbourne, he will lose the opportunity not only to seed in major tournaments, but also to get directly into the main draws of some of them. In this case, luck will be needed to return to the top twenty, but in the second half of the season we will have reason to wait for Aslan there. At the Australian Open, by the way, he got a well-known opponent – Grigor Dimitrov. But I do not think that the Bulgarian is happy with this option, since two years ago Karatsev beat him in the quarterfinals of Melbourne. If Aslan’s trademark aggressive game goes, it will be difficult for Dimitrov to offer something. Of course, he will try to change the pace and rhythm, but he will not be able to crush Karasev with power and speed.

— What can you say about the fifth Russian player in the top hundred, Roman Safiullin, who will play with the outrageous Australian Nick Kirios, last year’s Wimbledon finalist?

– This match can also turn out to be interesting. Last week, Roman in Adelaide qualified and one lap of the main draw, then losing to a strong opponent Denis Shapovalov. Safiullin is not afraid to play with favorites, because he knows how to play second number. He also had memorable victories – for example, over Stefanos Tsitsipas last year. The question is whether Roman can handle the show atmosphere that Kyrios is sure to create at their match tonight. If he succeeds, it can turn out to be a very interesting game. If we talk about Safiullin’s prospects this year, then after several months of working with Yegor Yatsyk, who resumed cooperation with Aslan Karatsev, he is now training under the guidance of Andrey Kuznetsov (Junior Wimbledon champion in 2009, former 39th racket of the world.— “b”). He will certainly enter the ranks of the 50 strongest in the world according to his strength. By the way, I would note the progress of another of our tennis players – Pavel Kotov, who at the end of last year made his way into the top hundred, but has now dropped out of it. He lost in the last qualifying round, but also got into the main draw as a lucky loser. And I think he has a chance against the Dutchman Tallon Grikspur, who recently won the tournament in Pune. Pavel has nothing to lose, and he won both previous matches against this opponent. True, they passed on the ground.

– Let’s move on to the women’s grid. Some experts believe that of the Russian tennis players, the best chances of playing in Melbourne are not Daria Kasatkina and Veronika Kudermetova, who are in the top ten, but Lyudmila Samsonova. Do you agree?

“I won’t say for sure, but, in any case, this opinion can be substantiated. The fact is that Samsonova is such a tennis player who, due to her aggressive style, combined with her psychological attitude, is able to demolish absolutely any opponent, even the most titled one. This happened in several tournaments that Lyudmila managed to win. The question is whether she will be able to demonstrate her perfect tennis for two weeks in a row against the backdrop of changing weather conditions. Indeed, in Melbourne, the heat alternates with rain and coolness, and one must be able to adapt to this. Not to mention the motivation with which all the strongest perform at the Grand Slam tournaments.

– Kasatkina reached the final in Adelaide, but unsuccessfully spent it, taking only two games from Belinda Bencic, and Kudermetova could not reach the semi-finals against this Swiss due to injury. An alarming situation?

– Regarding Veronica’s injury, I still do not have specific information. Let’s hope everything works out for her. In any case, Veronika should have confidence after a recent meeting with American Danielle Collins, in which Kudermetova managed to win back five match points. I think that Kasatkina, despite the defeat, is in a good mood and she will have time to recover by the first round match. There is time for this. With Varvara Gracheva, another of our tennis players, she will play on Tuesday evening. In Adelaide, conditions are somewhat different. Compared to Melbourne, the air is drier there, and after Kasatkina’s flight, she will need to have time to adapt a little. But she has time for this. Gracheva is distinguished by intransigence, but if both of them show their best game, Kasatkina will have more chances.

– What can you expect from the three-time Australian Open quarter-finalist Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, who missed most of last season due to knee problems?

– I am very glad that Nastya returned after an injury and rehabilitation. She got an experienced Italian Camila Giorgi in the first round, but the result is not so important now. The main thing is that her knee should withstand the stress of big matches, when you need to show your maximum on adrenaline, pulling out the most difficult balls. Let Pavlyuchenkova say after the end of the tournament that nothing hurts her, this will already be a success. And everything else will come.