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Medvedev and Gilles Cervara end eight-season partnership after 2025 US Open exit

Medvedev splits with coach Gilles Cervara after US Open exit and disappointing 2025 season. Details.

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Daniil Medvedev and long-time coach Gilles Cervara have confirmed the end of their working relationship days after the Russian’s dramatic exit from the 2025 US Open. The split was announced in statements from both parties following a five-set defeat to Benjamin Bonzi in New York.

Medvedev’s disappointing season continued in that match, which also resulted in a $42,000 fine for his on-court behaviour. The 29-year-old argued with umpire Greg Allensworth for six minutes after the decision to re-award Bonzi a first serve when a photographer stepped onto the court. Bonzi had been holding match point on serve; Medvedev rallied to take the third and fourth sets but lost the deciding set after surrendering a lead.

The US Open defeat followed an earlier loss to Bonzi in the opening round of Wimbledon, and came after a poor run at the other majors this season. Medvedev was beaten in the opening round of the French Open by Cameron Norrie and fell in round two of the Australian Open to Learner Tien. He has not won a title since the 2023 Italian Open, has not reached a Grand Slam final since the 2024 Australian Open, and is currently down at world No 16 in the ATP Live Rankings.

The decision to part ways with Cervara ends a highly successful eight-season collaboration. Under Cervara’s guidance Medvedev lifted the 2021 US Open title, reached a further five major finals and held the world No 1 ranking in 2022. Cervara posted a lengthy message on Instagram reflecting on their time together and thanking Medvedev:

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“He wrote: “Daniil. Our fantastic eight-season adventure together comes to an end. Like a symbolic wink of life, it’s after this US Open tournament that we end our collaboration.

“I am grateful and happy for all the great things and wonderful experiences we were able to experience together on the court during these eight years. It will remain etched in my memory forever.

“I thank you for placing your trust in me. I gave EVERYTHING, every second, for our shared goals. I loved training you, coaching you, supporting you (even when it was difficult), and finding solutions with you and the team to help you perform.

“I will keep in mind your unconventional magic as a player, which is your strength. It will return, I’m sure.

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“I wish you all the success you aspire to as a player in the future. And a happy life as a man.

“The road continues, work and performance call to each of us…and I wish us both success.”

Cervara’s message was followed shortly by a brief message from Medvedev, also on Instagram, thanking the Frenchman for his efforts.

“Thank you Gilles,” said Medvedev.

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“Amazing 8-10 years together, 20 titles, world number 1 but most importantly a lot of fun moments and memories that will stay with us forever.

“I am grateful to you for guiding me through all these years and let’s see what life brings us in the future.”

The announcement closes a chapter that delivered the sport’s biggest prize to Medvedev and raised questions about the next coaching appointment as he seeks to arrest a dip in form.

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ATP Player News

Medvedev and Cervara End Near-Decade Coaching Partnership After 2025 US Open

Medvedev ends nearly decade-long partnership with coach Gilles Cervara after difficult 2025 run saga

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Daniil Medvedev announced on social media that his long-running partnership with coach Gilles Cervara has ended after the 2025 US Open. “Amazing 8-10 years together,” the former world No. 1 wrote, “20 titles, world number 1 but most importantly a lot of fun moments and memories that will stay with us forever. I am grateful to you for guiding me through all these years and let’s see what life brings us in the future.”

Under Cervara, Medvedev reached the top of the ATP rankings and advanced to six Grand Slam finals, including his 2021 US Open victory that denied Novak Djokovic a Calendar Year Grand Slam. The split closes nearly a decade of collaboration that produced 20 titles and the highs of a major championship and the No. 1 ranking.

The decision comes amid a difficult stretch for Medvedev at the majors. His final match with Cervara was at the 2025 US Open, where he endured a third straight Grand Slam first-round loss. The 29-year-old has struggled at majors since the 2024 Australian Open, where he lost the final to Jannik Sinner from two sets up. Across four major appearances in 2025, Medvedev won only one match and recorded three consecutive first-round exits.

At the US Open he again fell to Benjamin Bonzi, who had beaten him two months earlier at Wimbledon. During that match on Louis Armstrong Stadium Medvedev was assessed a $42,500 fine for unsportsmanlike conduct after berating umpire Greg Allensworth and delaying play for more than six minutes while Bonzi served for the match. Medvedev ultimately lost in five sets and will drop further in the rankings after starting the year at No. 5.

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The player and coach offered a public acknowledgment of successful years together, while Medvedev now faces choices about the next phase of his coaching arrangements and his season ahead.

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ATP Grand Slam US Open

Leandro Riedi’s qualifying run sends him soaring 271 places into US Open fourth round

Riedi to jump 271 places to world No 164 after qualifying run brings him to US Open round four. Mon.

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Leandro Riedi advanced into the fourth round of the US Open after an unexpected sequence of wins that has pushed his ranking dramatically higher. The 23-year-old entered the tournament through qualifying and, in just his second major main-draw appearance, reached the second week of a Grand Slam for the first time.

Riedi beat Pedro Martinez and recovered from two sets down to defeat 19th seed Francisco Cerundolo to reach round three. He then faced Kamil Majchrzak, who had earlier beaten ninth seed Karen Khachanov in five sets. Majchrzak retired at 5-3 down in the opening set, sending Riedi into the round of 16.

Having reached a career-high of world No 117 last summer, Riedi had fallen to 435th in the ATP Rankings after a knee injury and subsequent surgery at the end of 2024. He needed a protected ranking to enter qualifying at the US Open and has now claimed six successive victories to reach the fourth round.

“First of all, I feel very bad for my opponent, for Kamil,” he said.

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“You don’t want to see that. I wanted to win, yes, but fair and square. But if someone knows how it feels, it’s definitely me, I would say. And maybe this is the luck I deserve a bit from my last 10 months.

“And yes, of course I’m very happy to win the second week, but I want to do it the right way. But of course, I’m very happy and proud of myself and my team.

“It’s a crazy feeling. I don’t really feel it yet that it’s actually happening. So it’s pretty cool being like just, just at the US Open, that journey.”

As a result of his run, Riedi is set to climb an extraordinary 271 places to world No 164 in the ATP Live Rankings ahead of his fourth-round meeting with eighth seed Alex de Minaur on Monday. Regardless of the outcome of that match, Riedi has already become the lowest-ranked man to reach the fourth round of the US Open in the 21st century. In the Open Era, only Jay Berger (No 730, 1985) and Aaron Krickstein (No 490, 1983) reached this stage at a lower ranking.

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How Alcaraz and Sinner Could Make Open Era History at the US Open

Alcaraz and Sinner can become first men in Open Era to meet in three Grand Slam finals in one year.

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Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner have dominated Grand Slam headlines through 2025, combining to win seven straight major singles titles and establishing one of the sport’s most successful recent duopolies. Their rivalry produced back-to-back finals in June and July, with Alcaraz edging Sinner at Roland Garros and Sinner reversing the result with a four-set victory at Wimbledon.

Both players advanced into the second week at the US Open and enter the latter stages as heavy favourites to meet in a third straight major final. If that match-up materialises in New York, it would be unprecedented in the Open Era: no pair of men have met in three Grand Slam finals in the same season since the professional era began in 1968.

The same pairing appearing in multiple major finals is rare but not unknown. The Open Era has recorded 17 occasions when two men have contested two Grand Slam finals in one season. That list includes the current Alcaraz-Sinner sequence at Roland Garros and Wimbledon and highlights an increase in repeated final pairings in recent decades driven by sustained dominance from players such as Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, and Andy Murray. The most recent example before this year was Novak Djokovic and Daniil Medvedev meeting in the Australian Open and US Open finals in 2021.

Looking beyond the Open Era, men meeting in three major finals in a single season did occur in the amateur era. Roy Emerson and Fred Stolle met in three finals in 1964, and Emerson had been on the losing side to Rod Laver across three finals in 1962. Laver’s 1962 season included a Wimbledon victory over Marty Mulligan and completed a calendar Grand Slam.

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A third Alcaraz-Sinner final would also underline how concentrated the major finals field has been this season. It would mean, along with Alexander Zverev — the Australian Open runner-up to Sinner — that only three men have reached Grand Slam singles finals in 2025, a mark last seen six decades ago.

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