After defeating defending US Open champion Carlos Alcaraz at Arthur Ashe Stadium, Daniil Medvedev encouraged the crowd to create some noise.
On Friday, September 8, the current world No. 3 delivered an outstanding performance to thwart the Spaniard's quest to win his second US Open championship. In a four-set match with many twists and turns, he defeated Carlos Alcaraz 7-6 (3), 6-2, 3-6, 6-3.
20-year-old Alcaraz did not appear to be at his best from the beginning itself, taking the first set in a tiebreak before losing it. In the second set, he appeared to be all over the place, but somehow managed to make a comeback in the following set. The final set was a nail-biter in which Daniil Medvedev saved five breakpoints before claiming victory over Carlos Alcaraz.
On match point against Carlos Alcaraz, when Daniil Medvedev committed two double faults in a succession, he gave the cheering audience a sarcastic thumbs up. So, when he defeated their favorite player and won the match, the Russian player asked the audience to make some noise and participate in the celebration.
On Sunday, Daniil Medvedev will play Novak Djokovic in the final of the New York major. The Serb defeated Ben Shelton in straight sets, 6-3, 6-2, 6-7 (4), to advance to his tenth US Open championship match.
A rematch between Daniil Medvedev and Novak Djokovic at the US Open
Daniil Medvedev squared off against the World No. 2 at the US Open final in 2021 and dominated the match, winning three sets 6-4, 6-4, 6-4, leaving Novak Djokovic high and dry in his quest to be the first man since Rod Laver in 1969 to conquer all four majors in a single season.
In an on court interview after his victory over Carlos Alcaraz, Daniil Medvedev said that he would need to bring his A-game once more, just like he did in 2021, as he is about to face off against a man with 23 grand slams under his belt.
“The challenge is that you play a guy who won 23 grand slams and I have only one. So same, I need to… when I beat him here, I managed to play better than myself and I need to do it again there is no other way”, he stated.
Daniil Medvedev trails Novak Djokovic 5-9 in their head-to-head record, with the latter prevailing 6-4, 6-4 in their most recent meeting at the Dubai Tennis Championships.