Daniil Medvedev explains why Rafael Jodar was able to beat him in Shanghai – ‘That was the difference’

Daniil Medvedev’s Shanghai Masters campaign came to an end at the hands of an inspired Rafael Jodar in the semifinals of the Masters tournament.

Medvedev has impressively already beaten the likes of Stefanos Tsitsipas, Tommy Paul, and Jan-Lennard Struff to reach the semifinals, but only one player looked like winning between the Russian star and the Spaniard.

Jodar was a step above Medvedev as he beat Medvedev 6-3, 6-4 to set up an all-Spanish final against Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in his first Masters final.

Medvedev was impressed by the quality of Jodar in their semifinal match and used some of his post-match press conference to praise the teenager.

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Asked about Jodar’s level, Medvedev responded: “He played good today. He was returning well. I think I could have been a bit better on my serve in terms of spots. But also, yeah, he did put a lot of pressure on the return, and I think that was the difference, he was better on the return than I was.”

Jodar has been the breakout player on the ATP Tour this season, and he now sits on the cusp of the top 10 following his victory against Medvedev.

For Medvedev, he is convinced Jodar will be a top 10 player for a very long time.

“Yeah, great player. I mean, he’s top 10, so it’s not like he’s 60 in the world and we’re starting to talk about him,” explained the Russian star.

However, Medvedev was not ready to label Jodar has a potential Grand Slam champion just yet.

“He’s a top-10 player, we never know who wins 25 Grand Slams, six, one, two, let’s see,” said Medvedev.

Both Medvedev and Jodar are currently in the race to qualify for the ATP Finals at the end of the season.

Medvedev looks all-but-certain to book his place in the tournament for the best eight players on the ATP Tour, as he currently sits at sixth in the race.

Jodar, meanwhile, still has a bit of work to do in order to get himself in contention. The Spaniard is currently ninth in the race, although he will enter the top eight if he wins the Shanghai Masters.

The Spaniard’s next tournament following the Shanghai Masters is currently set to be the Swiss Indoors, which begins on October 26th. It will be Jodar’s first appearance at the indoor hardcourt tournament, so he is not defending any ranking points.

Following his stint in Basel, Jodar will then play the final Masters tournament of the ATP Tour calendar at the Paris Masters, beginning on November 2nd.