Daniil Medvedev: "Becoming the No. 1 in the world is still the goal"

Daniil Medvedev is still chasing the No. 1 ranking but says it might still take him a while until he can challenge Novak Djokovic's hold on the top spot.

The 25-year-old won his first Grand Slam at the US Open, defeating top seed Djokovic in the final, but fell in the fourth round against Grigor Dimitrov at Indian Wells. He also decided not to play his home event this week in Moscow.

"It's not only fatigue, there were a couple of things I felt in Indian Wells," Medvedev told press at Moscow. "There is nothing serious, but I don't want to talk about them."

He's won four titles and also reached another Grand Slam final at the Australian Open, but wear and tear has accompanied that successful stretch.

"Since the Olympics, I have not returned home—for two and a half months, I was in the States," said Medvedev.

Medvedev is currently No. 2 and 1,800 ranking points behind No. 1 Djokovic, with two more events on his schedule—the Paris Masters, which awards 1,000 points to the winner, and the ATP Finals, which gives up to 1,500 points to the winner.

"Becoming the No. 1 in the world is still the goal," he said. ''Though Novak did not play several Masters this year, he won three Slams and was in the final of the fourth, so it is logical that he is still No. 1. If I'll catch up with him this year, excellent, but if not I will try to do it down the road."

Having reached two Grand Slam finals before winning his first, he understands big career accomplishments can take a while.

"Yes, for me experience is the key," said Medvedev. "In 2019 I was in the final of the US Open, but I did not win. And this year, I was in the finals of Australia also.

"This experience helped me in the final of the US Open."

Getting to the top requires consistency, which is also Medvedev's aim.

"My biggest goal is to work and be the best version of myself in every tournament, whether a Slam or a 250 event," he said.

The Russian has 12 career titles.