Medvedev’s rise hits new height
Third-seeded Russian wins in straight sets to reach 1st Slam final
NEW YORK — Daniil Medvedev first made a name for himself at the U.S. Open by earning the wrath of spectators. Now he’s gaining everyone’s respect as he heads to his first Grand Slam final.
The No. 5-seeded Russian has gone from trolling angry crowds at Flushing Meadows to playing for the title after beating unseeded Grigor Dimitrov 7-6 (5), 6-4, 6-3 in the semifinals Friday under Arthur Ashe Stadium’s closed retractable roof.
During his on-court interview, Medvedev referenced his “tournament of controversies,” which included $19,000 in fines and antagonizing booing fans, saying he knew it was “not going to be easy with the public.”
Medvedev’s tennis was a bit scratchy Friday, and he barely avoided dropping the opening set, but he did just enough with his mostly defensive style to get past Dimitrov, who had eliminated Roger Federer in a five-set quarterfinal.
“I do think he was better player in first set. I do think I was kind of lucky to win it,” Medvedev said about Dimitrov. “Then the momentum changed completely.”
In Sunday’s final, Medvedev, 23, will face 18-time major champion Rafael Nadal. The 33-year-old threetime U.S. Open winner from Spain beat 23-year- old Italian Matteo Berrettini, the No. 24 seed, 7-6 (6), 6-4, 6-1 in Friday’s second semifinal.
The 6-foot-6 Medvedev hadn’t even been past the fourth round at a Slam until this one. He’s been the tour’s top player over the recent hard-court circuit, though, reaching three other finals on the surface. Medvedev has won 20 of his last 22 matches and leads the tour with 50 victories in 2019.
“Deep inside of me,” Medvedev said, “I understand that what I’ve done these four weeks is amazing.”
He drew all sorts of attention during Week 1 at the U.S. Open. In his third-round victory, fans got on him for angrily snatching and tossing away a towel from a ballperson, then for holding up his middle finger against the side of his face. When they let him hear it at the end of the match, jeering loudly, he basked in it, asking for more noise and sarcastically thanking them. There was a similar display after his next win, too.
“I’m not proud of what I did,” Medvedev said Friday. “I’m working to never do it again.”
Dimitrov was heading in the opposite direction, losing seven of his last eight matches before getting to New York. That’s why a player once ranked No. 3 was down to No. 78, making him the lowest semifinalist at the U.S. Open since 1991, when Jimmy Connors was out of the top 150.
Dimitrov sure should have gone up a set early.
He was a point away while leading 6-5 as Medvedev served. But Medvedev played aggressively there, using a big forehand to get to the net and take that point, then turned to his guest box and barked something. The ensuing tiebreaker was filled with errors by both, closing with a forehand into the net by Dimitrov and another that he sailed long.
“I had to go for something very difficult,” Dimitrov said.
Truth be told, neither was all that elegant or excellent in that first set. Yet Medvedev managed to take it. The second set came down to the last game, when Dimitrov’s inconsistency was again on display. After one spectacular point, which drew a standing ovation, he paused to take a look at a replay on the overhead videoboard. Soon after that, though, he hit a mediocre approach shot that allowed Medvedev to strike a downthe-line backhand winner for set point. Dimitrov followed with a backhand into the net and hung his head.
That made it a two-set lead.