This defeat in 2021 is one of the most traumatic of his career as the Serb, whose hunt for records is now the reason for living on the circuit, was just three sets away from becoming the first player to win all four Majors in the same year since Rod Laver in 1969.

"Overwhelmed by emotions", according to his confession - he even cried on the court during a change of sides at the end of the game - the Djoker had not been able to oppose his best to Medvedev.

This time, while he has again played the finals of the four Majors of the season but is no longer in the race for the Grand Slam, he tries to put himself in another state of mind, by minimizing beforehand the scope of a possible victory.

Don't think about it

"Every time I play a Grand Slam final, I am aware that it is an opportunity to write a page in the history of tennis, and I am proud of it. But I don't have time, and I forbid myself to think too much about the historical aspect," Djokovic said.

Especially since this record of Margaret Court, he already thought he could put it in the pocket in July at Wimbledon during the first duel in the final of Grand Slam against Carlos Alcaraz.

"I was very close to reaching 24 in London, but I lost to stronger than me a tight final in five sets," he recalls, who was then unbeaten in the grass tournament since his defeat in the quarterfinals in 2017.

At Flushing Meadows, he will face Medvedev who, too, had ended a historic streak of 27 matches won in a row on the season in Grand Slam. The Russian eliminated Alcaraz in the semis by recalling how strong he was on hard, his favorite surface.

He will come on Sunday with the best record on this surface of the season and even of the last five years: he has 38 victories in 2023 (4 titles in Rotterdam, Doha, Dubai and Miami) and since 2018, he is the most awarded player with 18 titles including the US Open 2021, 28 finals including the US Open 2023 and 2019, as well as the 2021 and 2022 Australian Open, and 234 matches won.

"Situation of danger"

He and Alcaraz are the last players to have beaten Djokovic in a Grand Slam final, but the Russian is nevertheless very wary of the Serb who will play his tenth American final (Bill Tilden's record equaled), the 36th in Grand Slam (new record with five lengths ahead of Roger Federer now).

"Every time he's stronger than in the previous game," Medvedev said. In 2021, I beat him at the US Open and the next time he beat me at Bercy. He lost at Wimbledon to Alcaraz and beat him in Cincinnati the next time. I will face the best Novak possible on Sunday and I will have to be myself at a level that I have never reached before if I want to try to beat him.

Djokovic (36) and Medvedev (27) have already faced each other 14 times, with nine wins for the Serb. So tactically, both players know what to expect.

"We both pretty much know what to do. But it's always the same, you know what you have to do, but now you have to manage to do it," said the Russian.

His French coach Gilles Cervara, believes that it will be mostly a psychological story.

"You have to get back into a situation of danger and uncertainty that makes you at the top of the top, explains the coach. The danger is to believe that we have leads and that we know how to do it. No, no, no, we don't know how to do it! Against Alcaraz, it was a great game, a great victory, but it was only a semi-final. We need the final victory!"

© 2023 AFP