As the only former champion, Daniil Medvedev protects his home in New York | ATP Tour

US Open

As the only former champion, Medvedev protects his home in New York

Daniil lifted the cup at Flushing Meadows in 2021

September 02, 2024

Daniil Medvedev made it to the round of 16 of the US Open with an unusual reality: he is the only survivor who has won the tournament. Barely halfway through the Grand Slam, where players with trophy collections usually make their way, the world No. 5 is living in an environment of contenders. This context propels him on a stage where he achieved his great feat three years ago: getting his hands on a major that he wants to make his own again.

The fifth seed put on a show of strength to reach the quarter-finals, defeating Portuguese Nuno Borges 6-0, 6-1, 6-3 in one hour and 48 minutes of relentless tennis. Arthur Ashe Stadium witnessed a duel tilted in Daniil’s favour from the start, with the former champion making a clear point. Although surprises have been a constant in the tournament, they seem to be quite far from his path.

In a match largely dominated from the first shots, Medvedev had to put in a lot of effort on the world’s biggest court. After winning the first two sets in less than an hour, Daniil avoided taking his foot off the accelerator in New York. Although Borges caught his only break at the start of the third set (1-2), Medvedev responded immediately to counterattack on his way to victory.

“I try to work hard. Sometimes I do, sometimes I don’t,” Medvedev told Nick Kyrgios during the on-court interview. “There are days when it’s hard to go out on court and train, but I know one thing for sure: if the other guy trains more than me, I have less chance of winning. And I always want to win. So I train as much as I can.”

“I’ve had quite a bit of success at the US Open. The last time I lost in the fourth round was to you. I have good memories.”

Now, the fight for a Grand Slam will require a maximum effort and that is what appears on the horizon for Medvedev. The world No. 5 will face in the quarterfinals of the US Open the top seed Jannik Sinner or the American Tommy Paul, one of the most supported players in the last major of the season.

Daniil continues to nurture his consistency at Grand Slam tournaments, where he has reached an unprecedented maturity in his career. The current US Open runner-up has returned to performing strongly on the big stage in 2024, reaching the final of the Australian Open and climbing for the second year in a row to the semi-finals on the grass of Wimbledon.

Medvedev heads to New York with the chance to strengthen his Nitto ATP Finals qualification hopes for a sixth consecutive year. Daniil, the champion in his second appearance at the tournament in 2020, currently sits at No. 4 in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin and holds a lead of more than 1,400 points in the qualifying positions for the season-ending event.

Did you know that…?
Daniil Medvedev is aiming to become the fourth man this century to win multiple US Open singles titles. With a feat that is just three steps away, he is trying to follow in the footsteps of Swiss Roger Federer (5), Spaniard Rafael Nadal (4) and Serbian Novak Djokovic (4).