Gilles Cervara: The Coach Behind Daniil Medvedev's Rise

Coaching Spotlight 

Gilles Cervara is a French tennis coach who has been working full-time with Daniil Medvedev since summer 2017. In this time, he has helped the Russian star capture nineteen ATP Tour singles titles, including five Masters 1000 trophies and the 2022 US Open, and reach a career-high ranking of World No. 1. 

Coaching Style and Philosophy 

Cervara is known for his ability to adapt to Medvedev's personality and game style, and to find the right words and strategies to motivate him and bring out his best tennis. He describes his coaching approach as "like water", meaning that he tries to use the good wave and flow with the situation. Cervara believes that Medvedev's competitive spirit and desire to win everything he plays are key factors that save his life when he is in trouble. He also praises Medvedev's intelligence and creativity on the court, which make him unpredictable and difficult for his opponents to read. 

Cervara also focuses on improving Medvedev's mental and physical aspects of the game, such as his confidence, consistency, stamina and recovery. He works closely with Medvedev's agent Olivier van Lindonk and his fitness trainer Eric Hernandez to ensure that Medvedev is well prepared for every tournament. 

Coaching Achievements and Challenges 

Cervara has been instrumental in Medvedev's remarkable rise from No. 12 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings in February 2023 to No. 1 in April 2023. During this period, Medvedev won four consecutive titles in Rotterdam, Doha, Dubai and Miami, and reached the final in Indian Wells, where he lost a close match to Carlos Alcaraz. 

Cervara also helped Medvedev overcome a tough start of the year in 2023, when he lost in the fourth round of the Australian Open to Alexander Zverev. Cervara recalls that before Rotterdam, Medvedev was quite nervous and not confident, but he managed to talk to him in a good way and make him practise well and win the sets during practices. He says that the first round win against Alejandro Davidovich Fokina was key to get him on fire, and that the win against Felix Auger-Aliassime made another important step as he was playing in fine form. 

One of Cervara's biggest challenges as a coach was to help Medvedev adapt to different surfaces and conditions, especially clay and grass, where Medvedev had less success than on hard courts. Cervara says that he tried to make Medvedev understand that he could play well on any surface if he adjusted his game plan and tactics accordingly. He also says that he tried to make him enjoy playing on different surfaces and see them as opportunities rather than obstacles. 

Another challenge for Cervara was to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic, which disrupted the tennis calendar and forced many tournaments to be cancelled or postponed. Cervara says that it was difficult to manage the long time without tournaments and matches, but he tried to adapt as much as possible and keep Medvedev motivated and fit during the pandemic. 

Coaching Future and Goals 

Cervara says that he is very happy with his coaching relationship with Medvedev, and that they have a lot of trust and respect for each other. He says that they share the same vision and goals for Medvedev's tennis career, which are to keep improving his game, win more titles and majors, stay at the top of the rankings, and compete for the biggest trophies. 

Cervara also says that he is always looking for new ways to help Medvedev grow as a player and a person, and that he is open to learning from other coaches and experts in the field. He says that he is inspired by coaches like Patrick Mouratoglou, Toni Nadal, Marian Vajda and Ivan Lendl. Cervara hopes that his coaching success with Medvedev will inspire other young players and coaches in France and around the world. He says that he is proud of being part of the French tennis community, which has produced many great players and coaches over the years.