Medvedev says balance key as he adapts game for clay

Medvedev has won 18 of his 19 titles, including the 2021 US Open, on hardcourts

Miami Gardens (Reuters) - Daniil Medvedev will head into the Monte Carlo Masters hoping to strike the right balance as the world number four looks to tweak his game for the claycourt swing without compromising on the style that has delivered four titles in 2023.

Medvedev has won 18 of his 19 titles, including the 2021 U.S. Open, on hardcourts, the only exception coming at the Mallorca Open when he triumphed on grass the same year. He has been in red-hot form this season having triumphed in Rotterdam, Doha, Dubai and Miami but the 27-year-old knows clay presents a different challenge for his game.

"I definitely have to change my game because my strokes are too flat and clay doesn't let the ball go through the court as much," Medvedev, who plays Lorenzo Sonego or Ugo Humbert first in the ATP 1000 tournament, said.

"My opponents can use those (shots against me). "At the same time, you can't change what you do in nine months or a year drastically, so I have to find a good balance where I still play my game, with a little change, with some shots in the right moment."

Despite not being the biggest fan of clay, Medvedev reached the Monte Carlo semi-finals and Barcelona final in 2019 and the Russian knows winning a title on the surface would boost his confidence before the French Open.

He would much rather be playing on hardcourts though.

"I wish we could continue on hard, but I understand that there are different surfaces on Tour and that is good because some people are better on clay, some on hard, some on grass," Medvedev said.

"It's good to have different surfaces, I think that's good for the sport."