The tennis tournament in Cincinnati has another hero with a Russian passport besides Svetlana Kuznetsova. Following her, Daniil Medvedev entered the finals of one of the oldest competitions that has been leading history since 1899. His path was not similar to that overcome by the 34-year-old athlete, but he also had to overcome a lot in order to fight on Sunday for the main trophy.
Suffice it to say that at the moment none of the tennis players have spent as much time on the court as Medvedev. Over the past three weeks, he played the maximum possible number of matches in the ATP round, adjusted for the fact that, thanks to the rating, he sometimes automatically went into the second round. In every tournament in which a 23-year-old Russian took part, he reached the finals.
It all started in Washington, where the victories over Bjorn Fratangelo, Francis Tiafo, Marin Cilic and Peter Goyovchik led Medvedev to the finals with Nick Kirios. Then the Russian lost two tie-breaks and went to Montreal for a more prestigious tournament of the Masters series.
A native of Moscow did not experience problems until the semi-finals. Neither Kyle Edmund, nor Christian Garin, nor Dominik Tim, nor Alexander Zverev managed to beat Medvedev for more than three games per set. Resistance was provided only to Karen Khachanov, who tried to save the match in a tie-break. True, the next day, an attempt to take the title again turned out to be a failure. Rafael Nadal himself beat Medvedev as easily as he did his rivals.
The secret of success of the Russian - in his pronounced style of play - long rallies with wide and low strokes that exhaust the opponents and crush psychologically. The fifth racket of the world Stefanos Tsitsipas in conversation with The New York Times called such tennis “slushy”, because it is unpleasant to play it. Medvedev is so focused on his style of play that he does not even try to use a strong pitch so as not to risk making mistakes. Its speed advantages, especially on the hard surface of the court, are enough to beat not the most sophisticated tennis players. Only in the match with Nadal, a model of psychological balance and stability, this bet did not play.
Soon, Medvedev in some ways surpassed the Spanish tennis player. In Cincinnati, he consistently defeated the same Edmund, Benoir Peer, Jan-Lennard Struff and Andrei Rublev, who secured his compatriot from a meeting with Roger Federer. Over the season, Medvedev has accumulated 42 victories in the professional round, and in this indicator he overtook the former leader of the Nadal rating.
The last hurdle to the third final in three weeks for Medvedev was Novak Djokovic. Against him, the Russian again tried to apply a proven game plan, but underestimated the first racket of the world. The Serb found opportunities for a counterattack and took advantage of them, and at the same time drove Medvedev from the back line with short strokes. For Djokovic to beat the Russian tennis player was extremely important - the defeat in Monte Carlo and the strained game at the Australian Open were not erased.
Medvedev’s defeat seemed inevitable, but after a break with a physiotherapist, he completely changed the design of his game, which did not give any result. From the middle of the second set, the Russians turned on the cannon feed and forgot about caution. Only the risk that paid off could save him. To the fact that Medvedev can make ace a second serve, Djokovic was not ready, just as for sharp and spontaneous blows. With a score of 3: 3, the Serb lost three games in a row and passed the game. The Russian tennis player continued to play in a new style for himself and soon won the third set and the entire match.
Medvedev was the first tennis player in 18 years to reach the finals three times in a row during a North American tour preceding the US Open. Last time, the Australian Patrick Rafter succeeded. Like the Russian, he first lost in the first two title matches, but celebrated the long-awaited victory in the third.
The final of Cincinnati, the Russian tennis player has yet to be. His opponent will be David Goffen. Two players remember each other perfectly in a tense five-set match at the last Wimbledon. Medvedev then won with a break in the decisive game with a score of 4: 1, but won only the game of the next seven. The Russian citizen was prevented by his long-standing problem - sometimes he winds up excessively due to judicial decisions and cannot come to his senses even under the threat of a fine.
The favorite of the match is not so easy to determine. Medvedev speaks the latest results, a returning mental stability and a rich gaming arsenal. If Goffen copes with the initial tactics of the Russian, then quickly come up with something new he should not be difficult.
After defeating Djokovic, Medvedev can only be hindered by general fatigue. 16 matches in 20 days is even more difficult than holding two Grand Slam tournaments in a month, while Medvedev’s rivals were not always simple. Goffen never played in Cincinnati with a seeded opponent, and his quarterfinal match with Yoshihita Nishioka did not even take place. Medvedev himself believes that the match with the Belgian will be difficult for him.
“I think that David and I have a similar game in style. We, in principle, find it difficult to play with each other. If he is in the finals, it means, like me, he is in crazy shape. The strongest must win, ”Medvedev told TASS.
Even before the final match, the Russian secured himself the seventh line in the ATP ranking - the highest in his career. A victory will allow him to break into the top five and become the first Russian in nine years to achieve this. Before him, only Yevgeny Kafelnikov, Marat Safin and Nikolai Davydenko managed this. Medvedev is not far off and getting to the ATP Final tournament - in the champion race he already takes fifth place.