"I played Federer, Djokovic, Agassi, the best is Rafael Nadal" – Daniil Medvedev's former coach Jean-Rene Lisnard

Rafael Nadal left the biggest impression on Jean-Rene Lisnard
Rafael Nadal left the biggest impression on Jean-Rene Lisnard

Daniil Medvedev’s former coach Jean-Rene Lisnard recently opened up about his experience of playing against Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer.

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Lisnard, a former Monegasque tennis player with a career-high ranking of World No. 84, had the privilege of sharing the court with some of the greatest players of all time during his days as a professional. His career highlights include wins over Andy Murray, Stan Wawrinka, Tomas Berdych, Marcelo Rios, and Magnus Norman.

Jean-Rene Lisnard also faced Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Andre Agassi, but did not succeed against any of them. He lost once each against Nadal and Agassi and twice each against Federer and Djokovic.

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Lisnard recently stated that out of the four legends, he found 14-time French Open champion Nadal to be the toughest opponent.

"I played Federer, Djokovic, Agassi… The best is Nadal. Every stitch is hell,” Jean-Rene Lisnard said, as per L’Equipe.

Over the years, many of Nadal's opponents have attested to his relentless intensity. Lisnard explained what it feels like when facing the Mallorcan.

“He has monstrous punching quality. Against anyone, you lead 40–0, you tell yourself that the game is almost won. Not against [Rafael Nadal],” he said.
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“He never lets go and you can feel it. When he takes control with his forehand, it's only a matter of time before you lose the point. He eats you,” Lisnard remarked.

"I show them Rafael Nadal in training" - Daniil Medvedev's former coach Jean-Rene Lisnard on coaching young hopefuls

Jean-Rene Lisnard faced the Spaniard in the second round of the Monte-Carlo Masters in 2006
Jean-Rene Lisnard faced the Spaniard in the second round of the Monte-Carlo Masters in 2006

Jean-Rene Lisnard, who founded the Elite Tennis Center and coached the likes of Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev during their early days, also stated that he asks his young students to follow the example of Rafael Nadal.

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“When I do Roland with juniors, I show them [Rafael Nadal] in training,” he said.

The former World No. 84 explained that he wishes for his students to be inspired by Nadal's drive to keep winning even after achieving historic success.

“It's two against one. And he puts maximum intensity on every strike. I tell the kids: 'Look, he's got 500 million in his account, more than 20 Grand Slams, but he's still on top of everything, all the time,'” he said.

This isn’t the first time Jean-Rene Lisnard has expressed his admiration for the 22-time Grand Slam champion. He had previously opened up about his inclination towards the Spaniard's style of play over that of Roger Federer.

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Edited by Samya Majumdar
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