Daniil Medvedev knows he has not performed to the best of his abilities at grand slams this season after his US Open title defence was ended by Nick Kyrgios.
Medvedev, who will also concede his spot at the top of the ATP's world rankings, has only won one of the four finals he has reached in 2022.
His record in the majors is a particular frustration for the 26-year-old. After losing to Rafael Nadal in the Australian Open final, Medvedev has reached the fourth round at Roland Garros and the same stage at Flushing Meadows, while The All England Club's ban on Russian and Belarusian athletes prevented him from competing at Wimbledon.
With Novak Djokovic unable to play in New York due to his COVID-19 vaccination status, Nadal, Carlos Alcaraz or Casper Ruud will become the world number one after the US Open's conclusion on Sunday.
"I mean, now that you say it, I remember it," Medvedev said in a press conference when asked how it felt to give up the number one spot.
"That's not nice because honestly after such a match, when you lose in a grand slam... I'm trying to look good here, but I'm disappointed.
"[I'm] not going to cry in the room, but I'm a little bit disappointed. For a few days I'm going to be just a little bit sad, looking at my phone, my laptop or watching some series.
"Yeah, it was not the first thing on my mind walking after the match, saying, 'Damn, I will not be the world number one anymore' – I actually don't know which place I will be. Probably three or four. I guess Carlos will pass me. I don't know actually.
"But that's motivation, try to do better. Obviously it was the last slam of the year. I didn't do well enough. Didn't win in Australia when I had the chance. Didn't get the chance to play at Wimbledon.
"Roland Garros, lost in the fourth round. Here, fourth round. Yeah, I should do better, should get more points if I want to be world number one again."
Medvedev went down 7-6 (13-11) 3-6 6-3 6-2 to Kyrgios, who has a 4-1 winning record against the Russian.
Asked if he thought it was Wimbledon finalist Kyrgios' best display against him, Medvedev suggested the Australian came close to replicating the form of greats Nadal and Djokovic.
"Yeah, it was a high-level match," he said. "[I] played Novak, Rafa. They all play amazing. Nick played kind of their level, in my opinion.
"He has a little bit different game because he's not a grinder in a way, [but] at the same time he can rally. He's tough to play.
"He has an amazing serve. He plays well, has every shot. It was a really high-level match from him.
"If he plays like this until the end of the tournament, he has all the chances to win it, but he's going to get tough opponents."
World number one Swiatek sees off Xiyu in Madrid opener
World number one Iga Swiatek overcame Wang Xiyu with the minimum of fuss on Thursday to progress to the third round of the Madrid Open.
Swiatek has yet to win the title in Madrid, which is the only clay-court European event at which the Pole has not triumphed, but she got off to a flying start with a 6-1 6-4 victory over Xiyu.
"I love this place. I got to know the city a little better last year," Swiatek said. "So this time I feel more comfortable around."
Next up for the 22-year-old is a third-round tie against 27th seed Sorana Cirstea on Saturday.
Data Debrief
Swiatek has registered 150 match wins on the WTA Tour since the start of 2022. Elena Rybakina and Coco Gauff are the next best with 108 wins each.
She also became the first player born this century to claim 50 combined match wins in Madrid, Rome and Roland-Garros, since the inaugural women's singles event at the Madrid Open in 2009.
Dominant Gauff double bagels Rus at Madrid Open
Coco Gauff made a flying start to her Madrid Open campaign on Thursday, recording the first double bagel main-draw win of her career as she cruised past Arantxa Rus to reach the round of 32.
Gauff needed just 51 minutes to see off 33-year-old Rus as she booked a meeting with Ukraine's Dayana Yamstremska for Saturday.
The US Open champion lost just 18 points throughout the match – eight in the opener and 10 in the second set – as she put any doubts over her recent form to bed in emphatic fashion.
Gauff's power proved too much for Rus in the opener, the third seed winning 88 per cent of points behind her first serve and converting three of four break points to go a set up in just 23 minutes.
Rus brought up four break points midway through the second set, but when she failed to convert them, Gauff punished her in ruthless fashion by reeling off another three games then finishing things with a terrific forehand winner.
Speaking after her win, the American said: "I played really well today. It was just one of those days for me… 6-0 6-0, I've never done that before, I'll probably never do it again."
Data Debrief: Gauff matches Azarenka, Halep feat
Gauff is just the third player to register a 6-0 6-0 win in the women's singles draw at the Madrid Open, following in the footsteps of two former world number ones in Victoria Azarenka and Simona Halep.
The American, who only turned 20 last month, is also the youngest player to double bagel an opponent in any main-draw match on the WTA Tour since Iga Swiatek did so against Karolina Pliskova in the 2021 Italian Open final in Rome.
Nadal cruises past teen Blanch to tee up De Minaur rematch in Madrid
Darwin Blanch presented little challenge for Rafael Nadal, who dropped just one game in a convincing 6-1 6-0 triumph at the Madrid Open.
Nadal is feeling his way back to fitness, but 16-year-old qualifier Blanch offered little resistance to the 22-time major champion on Thursday.
Making his farewell appearance at the Madrid Open, where he has won five titles, Nadal needed just 64 minutes to progress to round two.
"I think today I played against an opponent with a great future in front [of him], but today, still making mistakes," said Nadal.
"I just tried to be there, be solid all the time without taking a lot of risks. It worked well. I'm happy to be through and I wish him all the very best for the future."
Nadal's reward is a rematch with Alex de Minaur, who he lost to last week in Barcelona.
Data Debrief
This game saw the largest age gap (21 years, 117 days) between two opponents in the history of ATP Masters 1000 events.
Nadal has now registered 57 wins at the Madrid Open, which is 20 clear of any other player.
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