Daniil Medvedev has claimed that Rafael Nadal was breaking the rules before he retired in 2024.
Medvedev and Nadal shared the court six times, with the Russian losing five of those encounters, including two Grand Slam finals.
Each of those six meetings happened before 2025, which is when tennis officially allowed off-court coaching after years of trial periods.
Speaking after his first-round win at the Dubai Tennis Championships, Medvedev hinted that Nadal was getting help from coaches during matches long before it became legal. “I played Rafa many times,” he said. “I think it’s pretty clear they were coaching a lot at this moment.”
Daniil Medvedev suggests Rafael Nadal frequently violated the coaching rule
Medvedev recently argued that left-handed players are at a disadvantage, and his opening match in Dubai saw him face another southpaw, Juncheng Shang, whom he beat 6-1, 6-3.
Following that straightforward win at the ATP 500 event, Medvedev was asked in his post-match press conference whether advancements in racket technology have made it easier to reach the professional level.
The same question also touched on the recent rule change allowing players to receive coaching during matches and whether he had any issues with it.
Medvedev responded by saying he actually thinks it’s harder to become a professional tennis player now and added that he doesn’t mind the new coaching rules since many players were already doing it informally – including Nadal.
“I think now it’s much tougher, in general,” said Medvedev. “I’m not talking about this thing that now is popular, top 10, before, after. Let’s say even top 300 is definitely much stronger than before.”
“As you say, more people have the ability to play tennis. Federations are more involved. A lot of people maybe who would not have the opportunity before to travel and play tennis have it now. So I think to become a tennis professional inside the top 300 is much tougher than before. In general, the level is more close than before.”
“About coaching and stuff like this? This is just evolution of life,” Medvedev continued. “I think before I came on tour, every coach was talking. Now you can do it and not be scared of a coach violation.”
“But before everyone was talking. I mean, you see Rafa or someone else, especially like maybe it’s more popular in Spanish countries and stuff like this; they talked a lot,” he added. “It’s fine; nothing changed in this case.”
Roger Federer also accused Rafael Nadal of breaking the coaching rule
That 2006 incident wasn’t the only time coaching came up with Nadal. Federer spoke about it again in 2017 after an Australian Open semi-final win over Stan Wawrinka.
In his post-match press conference, Federer brought up off-court coaching and pointed out that it seemed to happen more in some countries than others.
He was asked whether he wanted on-court coaching allowed, replying: “It’s true. I do feel like certain coaches and players take more advantage of this than others. I don’t know exactly what the situation is down there at Davis Cup.
“That’s just how things are right now. I guess they’re working on that.”
Nadal was asked to respond but didn’t want to discuss specific comments made by other players.
Nadal denied any wrongdoing, explaining: “I never said anything from my box so far in my career. But I have nothing to say about what Roger said.”
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