'It was painful almost all the time' - Daniil Medvedev on year-long shoulder injury that hindered his play in 2023

Former World No.1 Daniil Medvedev experienced the best moment of his career when he won his maiden Grand Slam title at the 2021 US Open. However, the Russian has struggled to regain his consistency, and recently revealed he dealt with a lingering injury that led to his subsequent poor form.

The Moscow native shocked the tennis community when he won the Rome Masters in 2023. Known for his dislike of clay, Medvedev defeated the likes of Alexander Zverev, Stefanos Tsitsipas, and Holger Rune en route to winning the title.

However, Medvedev has failed to capture a trophy since winning the Rome title in 2023. The Russian has reached six ATP finals during that span, but has fallen in each one.

The former World No.1's decline saw him drop out of the top ten, and he currently sits at World No.14.With several pondering over his dip in form, Medvedev finally revealed he was dealing with a shoulder injury from the later half of 2023 till the middle of the 2024 season.

Managing the pain was difficult, said Medvedev

During a press conference at the ongoing DC Open, Medvedev spoke on how much he was affected by the shoulder injury that hampered his play for over a year.

“If I remember correctly, it would be from mid-2023 to mid-2024,” began the Russian. “It was painful almost all the time. Sometimes more. Sometimes less. It’s not easy because in many training sessions, you want to work on the serve, but I didn’t because I was afraid of aggravating it further.
“However, we found a way to work on it, and I’ve been pain-free for quite a while now, since mid-2024. When it happened, it also bothered me in the right arm. In fact, I felt like I lacked general energy as well. Whenever you have some pain, it’s not easy to play with it. Eventually, you try to cope with the pain."