A Medvedev “Masterclass” puts a bright spot on his rough 2020 campaign
Daniil Medvedev has had a rough 2020 campaign but his title in Paris was a masterclass of grit (and exactly what he needed heading into the ATP Finals).
We’ve seen a huge step forward for a couple of the ATP’s ‘NowGen’ stars. Dominic Thiem reached two Grand Slam finals this season (both of which on hard court) and was finally able to break through to claim his first major title at the US Open. Alexander Zverev has taken a similar step; his performance in Australia marked the first time he broke through to a semifinal after two previous failed attempts in a quarterfinal and his loss to Thiem in New York at the US Open Final showed that it wasn’t just a fluke. Zverev was here to stay.
Amidst the success of the aforementioned players was an increasing struggle for another of the NowGen headliners: Daniil Medvedev. After an incredible 2019 run that saw him claim 4 titles (2 Masters 1000) alongside another 5 runner-up appearances, which included the US Open, the hot-headed unorthodox Russian flew by his young counterparts and ended the year with the ranking of World No. 4.
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Since then, however, it’s been anything but successful, at least in comparison to last year. Outside of the US Open where he reached the semifinals before being drubbed by Thiem in straight sets, Medvedev has been far from consistent. With an 18-10 record (dating to before the start of the Rolex Paris Masters), he had more opening-round tournament losses (3) than semifinals (1), and those three opening-round losses equaled the number of quarterfinal appearances he’s had all year. He hadn’t defeated a top ten opponent in 28 matches and had just 2 wins against players ranked inside the top 20.
Based on what had been going on so far, not many expected Medvedev to make it through anywhere close to the end of Paris’ premier hard-court event. It seems as though Medvedev shines when the odds are stacked against him.
His 5-7, 6-4, 6-1 victory over Zverev in the Paris final exemplified his fighting spirit. He can beat anyone on any given day. Not only did he take out Zverev in the final, but he also won consecutive matches over Alex de Minaur, Diego Schwartzman, and Milos Raonic leading up to the title bout. In all of a few days, he took down four players in the top thirty (including three in the top twenty and two in the top ten, I might add).
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It wasn’t the prettiest win. It took grit and grind. It took a comeback. But it’s still a Medvedev Masterclass. Heading into the ATP Finals, this is exactly what he needed. As we saw last year, one match turned into two. Then three. Then four. One title turned into two. Then three, and so on. While Medvedev has just one tournament to go, you best believe he’s right in the mix.