Djokovic said it was a matter of time before Medvedev and his peers started winning Grand Slams, but at the moment he is in a race against history and his two biggest rivals. He's great, always very friendly, very outgoing but on the court he's definitely one of the toughest players that I ever faced in my life. 6 Stefanos Tsitsipas to advance to the final of the Australian Open. 1 Novak Djokovic locked horns with fourth-ranked Daniil Medvedev in a bid to lift his 18th Grand Slam title at the Rod Laver Arena on Sunday. Grand Slam titles are the first measuring stick in any discussion of who is the greatest player of the modern and professional era of tennis, also known as the Open era, which began in 1968. Based on Sunday's final, that day still looks some way off. "I came there and because I was shy I didn't speak, so he was asking me questions, talking to me like a friend. He broke Medvedev three times in the second set and had him breaking one racket, swatting the ground with its replacement and shrugging his shoulders at his coach, as if to say there was nothing he could do. To Medvedev's credit, he was eager to go down with a flourish and hit some stunning ground strokes as Djokovic tried to close out the match. Game on. 22/02/2021. The big hill that no one in Medvedev’s generation has been able to summit suddenly seemed that much higher. Medvedev, 25, added of his previous grand slam final appearance against Nadal: “I took a lot of experience. Coming into the match, Medvedev had reason to be confident. Djokovic served just three aces, but he won 73 percent of the points on his first serve and 58 percent on his second serve, numbers that usually translate to a dominant night. Novak Djokovic put on a masterclass in power and precision to overwhelm Daniil Medvedev in the Australian Open final and clinch his 18th grand slam title. World No. Shortly after arriving in Australia, Djokovic became a public enemy when he requested special treatment for 72 players put on 14-day hard quarantines because 10 people on three chartered flights those players took to Australia tested positive for coronavirus upon arrival. Medvedev … That match appeared to hint at a shrinking gap between the veterans and the young players trying to nip at their heels. Medvedev made 67 errors, 30 of them unforced, though against Djokovic the difference between a forced error and an unforced one is negligible. CNN and the CNN logo are registered marks of Cable News Network, Inc., displayed with permission. This is his 28th Grand Slam final. “I don’t feel like I am older or tired or anything like that,” he said. The victory gave Djokovic his ninth Australian Open singles championship, a tournament record on the men’s side, and the 18th Grand Slam title of his career. “I have to agree with my coach,” Djokovic said of Ivanisevic’s assessment of the past few months. Yet he survived a five set test in the third round and a four-set challenge with two tiebreakers in the quarterfinals. The turning point in the early stages came as the pair exchanged a stunning 28-shot rally, with Djokovic dumping his final shot into the bottom of the net to gift the Russian break point. But it's nice to see that you're thinking good things about me, thank you so much. Then came an injured abdominal muscle — doctors, he said, have told him it is torn — that nearly forced Djokovic out of the tournament. Medvedev had a 20-match winning streak heading into Sunday night. “That is something I have said before. 4-seeded Medvedev will take on No. Medvedev is seeded No. With the win, Medvedev became the first and only player to defeat the top 3 ranked players in the world en route to the title. Those night matches that the birds come for, along with legions of Serbs who scream the “Olé, olé, olé, olé,” chant when their favorite son most needs it, are often played in cooler temperatures than those that take place during the warm, dry days of the Australian summer. Daniil Medvedev defeated a fatigued Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-4, 6-2, 7-5 in the Australian Open semifinals, and will next play Novak Djokovic in search of his first Grand Slam title. He collapsed in celebration on the court then rose quickly, pumping his arms at his box and the crowd. Medvedev responded: "It's never easy to speak when you just lost a final of a Grand Slam. 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