"Some friends started buying toys for my daughter, it's pretty funny" - Daniil Medvedev on his 'Octopus' nickname & how he's come to love it

Daniil Medvedev overcame a two-set deficit to reach his fifth Major final at the 2024 Australian Open on Friday (January 26), beating Alexander Zverev 5-7, 3-6, 7-6(4), 7-6(5), 6-3 in four hours and 18 minutes.

Medvedev had a slow start to the match as Zverev broke his serve twice for a 4-1 lead in the first set. While Medvedev got those two breaks back, he eventually surrendered the set 7-5. Zverev, meanwhile, continued bombing big first serves left and right, taking the second set 6-3.

Both players then held serve throughout the third set, which was eventually won by Medvedev in a tiebreaker. The fourth set went down in similar fashion, again requiring a tiebreaker to be decided. The Russian came up with some impressive shotmaking under pressure, winning it seven points to five to force a final set.

Alexander Zverev had very little left in his tank during the decider, dropping his serve twice to hand Daniil Medvedev his seventh career win in five-set matches at the Majors.

In an interview following his thrilling victory, Daniil Medvedev was asked to give his thoughts on his "Mr. Octopus" nickname.

In response, the 27-year-old said that while he didn't take kindly to the moniker earlier, his friends buying octopus toys for his daughter Alisa made him feel better about it.

"That's fine, it's Andrey who made this name [Mr. Octopus], I don't really like it too much, but it becomes funnier and funnier, because some friends start buying toys for my daughter, of an octopus or stuff like this, so it's pretty funny," the Russian said.

"Basically, my name in Russian means bear, so I like it more. But, whatever, if someone calls me octopus at first, I might've been a little so-so. Now, it's fine," he added.

Daniil Medvedev was first referred to as "Octopus" by Andrey Rublev during a media interaction at the 2021 Laver Cup in Boston.

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Daniil Medvedev to face Jannik Sinner in the 2024 Australian Open final

Daniil Medvedev hits a forehand at the 2024 Australian Open

Daniil Medvedev will look to clinch his second Major title as he takes on fourth seed Jannik Sinner in the 2024 Australian Open final on Sunday (January 28). While the 2021 US Open winner leads his younger opponent by a margin of 6-3 in their head-to-head record, the final in Melbourne will likely be a tough outing for him.

Sinner, who will be playing in his first-ever Grand Slam championship match, has defeated Medvedev in their last three matches. The Italian needed three sets to get the better of the Russian at the ATP Finals and the Vienna Open final last year, and also beat him in straight sets to win the 2023 China Open.

Medvedev, on the other hand, had won their first six encounters on the ATP Tour. Some of his closest wins over Sinner came at the 2021 ATP Finals and the 2023 Rotterdam Open final.