Former American player Bradley Klahn believes Daniil Medvedev is like a “magician” on court and is nearing his best level again.

After establishing himself as a Grand Slam winner, a world No 1 and one of the best players in the world between 2019 and 2024, Medvedev‘s results steeply declined in 2025.

The Russian suffered three first-round defeats at the Grand Slams and had it not been for a strong end to the season, he could have dropped outside the top 15.

The 30-year-old is clawing his way back up the rankings towards the tail end of 2026, with Medvedev currently fifth in the Race to Turin. Incidentally, at 6ft 6in, very few players have moved as well as he has for his height, let alone effectively utilised a counter-punching style.

That, and more, is why American Klahn thinks the former US Open champion has something very special about him, something that was on full display in his three set comeback win over Cameron Norrie in Vienna on Thursday.

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Klahn said on the Inside-In podcast, “He’s a magician, right? You just have to sit back and enjoy the Medvedev experience. He’s a character on tour. He brings so much to the game because his game style is so different to the base game that you see from so many players right now.

“He is a problem-solver; I think he is one of the most intelligent, critical thinkers on court. How he adjusts his game is able to lull you into sleep, lull you out of your game, and keep the ball low and deep.”

Against Norrie, Medvedev lost the first set 6-4 before claiming the second 6-3. He was a break down in the third set and saved a match point before grinding out a 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 (1) victory at the ATP 500 event.

He will now face Adrian Mannarino in the quarter-finals, with a win set to secure his spot in this year’s ATP Finals. Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner have been this era’s dominant two, and Alexander Zverev’s two Grand Slam wins this year have separated from the chasing pack.

But Klein thinks there needs to be another figure after the top three to really stand up and take notice.

He added, “I feel on the men’s side, you’ve got the top three in Sinner, Alcaraz, and Zverev. Zverev has certainly solidified himself as world No 1 and won two slams this year.

“I would say he [Zverev] had arguably separated himself from the rest of the tiers just with his body of work. But you look at who is going to make up that 4-10, and there aren’t many guys – Medvedev is a slam champion – but there aren’t many guys able to match up with that day in and day out.

“He’s been world No 1 as well, so I think being able to rely on his pedigree in some of these matches and understand that he will find his way back. Last year was a pretty rough year, but he’s back up to five in the Race.”