It is rare to find matches in which Daniil Medvedev is not the favorite. But at the US Open, the Russian received this status in two games in a row.

After a sensational victory over Alcaraz in its confidence, nothing seemed to put pressure on Danya. And this was both an advantage and a cause for concern.

The Russian did not have such an inspired game as in the semi-finals.

Fatal misfire

Defeat in the last match in March of this year and, most importantly, capitulation in the final of the US Open 2021 – these are, perhaps, the main ingredients of motivation for 23-time major winner Novak Djokovic.

Medvedev, with his only Grand Slam title, looks modest in comparison with the Serb. However, for Dani this is the main advantage. The 27-year-old Russian is as good as ever in situations where he is perceived as an outsider.

Unfortunately, Medvedev started the set the same way as he did with Alcaraz. The only difference was that the Spaniard was unable to capitalize on the terrible quality of his opponent’s first serve, while the more experienced Djokovic achieved his goal right away. Moreover, the Russian lost the first game on his serve to zero.

It’s almost impossible to save the first game against Nole if you don’t serve. Danya realized this, so the next time he was more reliable – 1:3. Despite the fact that the Serbian was leading with a break, the Russian showed himself excellently in long rallies, which led to inaccuracies from his opponent. Like, for example, in the fifth game, when a rally of 36 shots ended with Novak’s error.

Novak Djokovic / Photo: © Elsa / Staff / Getty Images Sport / Gettyimages.ru

But these local successes did not allow us to hope for more. Danya continued to act strangely on his serve, making doubles and could have lost the set even with the score 2:5. The Serb had two set points, which Medvedev heroically fought back. But when serving for the game, the favorite did not waver – 6:3.

Master of the moment

According to tradition, Medvedev immediately went to the stands after a lost set, forcing Novak and the Arthur Ashe Center Court, filled with star guests, to wait more than five minutes for his return.

The break did not improve the game much – Medvedev suffered in the first game and gave a lot of effort to win it. The Russian was hampered by a huge number of unforced errors. Everything that landed in the line against Alcaraz hopelessly flew into the outs in the final. In four games of the second set, Dani had eight unforced errors, and the Serb had 0. Moreover, Nole took three games on his serve outright. Dani didn’t even have a hint of a break point.

All the more unexpected was the theater that Novak began to create in the seventh game, with the score tied on Dani’s serve. Twice the Serb lost grueling rallies, after which he defiantly threw his racket and fell onto the court, provoking the audience. This is how Nole found time and made his opponent go crazy.

It turned out that this was no coincidence. It really became difficult for Djokovic, and in the next game he allowed the Russian to earn the first break point of the match. And although Danya didn’t take it, it was progress. Even the mother of the great champion crossed herself several times, hoping thereby to give additional energy to her son. The second part of the game passed with a slight advantage for the Russian.

Daniil Medvedev / Photo: © Elsa / Staff / Getty Images Sport / Gettyimages.ru

This irritated his opponent. And so much so that Djokovic managed to make two double faults in the game with the score 5:6 and organize a set point for his opponent. However, Nole is a legend because in such crazy games that last 12 minutes, he gets his way. And then in the tiebreaker, where Medvedev made a mini-break, but did not bring the matter to victory, the Serbian had enough of his opponent’s only misfire. The second game lasted almost two hours!

Own mistakes

The brightest episode happened in the third set. With the score 1:1 on Novak’s serve, Danya ran to the net, got tangled in his legs and fell a little awkwardly. The Russian did not immediately get up, and then the Serb decided to jump over the net and help his opponent get up. But to the roar of the public, Medvedev refused help. And two plays later Danya shouted at the coach. For the unusually collected Daniel, this was a bad sign.

In the next game, Medvedev made enough mistakes to fill a full set, and gave Novak the second break of the match. To the Russian’s credit, he didn’t stop playing and immediately took a game on his opponent’s serve, but he couldn’t rejoice for long, as Danya then gave up his serve again. Here the Serb grabbed the advantage that had fallen on him with a vise and completed the final – 6:3, 7:6 (5), 6:3.

Novak Djokovic / Photo: © Al Bello / Staff / Getty Images Sport / Gettyimages.ru

Unfortunately, Danya only lasted for one royal set, in which only luck helped the Serbian legend. Novak won his 24th Grand Slam, but Danya was not ready for two feats in a row.