1 Response to usopen21medvedev_djokovic

1. Voo de Mar says:

   September 28, 2021 at 6:33 pm

   Points won by each set: | 31-23, 36-30, 32-30 |
   Points won directly behind the serve:
   37 % Medvedev – 33 of 89
   23 % Djokovic – 22 of 93

   It would have been one of the most memorable Slam finals if Djokovic [1] had won it because he was aiming to equal Rod Laver’s achievement of 1969 when the Australian four majors in a calendar year. The Serb had a positive H2H record (5:3) against Medvedev [2] including 3:0 in the “best of five” but he came into the final having spent more than five hours longer than the Russian on court, and I think it was a decisive factor. The 9 years younger Medvedev looked physically much stronger from the start, he was very aggressive on serve, very stable in defence as a receiver… Djokovic was running out of ideas how to construct baseline rallies and was exceptionally eager to apply serve-and-volley tactics, even though he was efficient at it in the first two sets, he lost them distinctively (broken in the opening game of the final, and at 2-all in the 2nd set). Djokovic smashed his racquet in the mid of the 2nd set but it didn’t help to realise tension. Throughout the match he was supported by the crowd line never in his whole career given the biggest stadiums of the world, but trailed *1:5 (30-all) when Medvedev finally showed signs of hesitation. At *5:2 he committed a double fault on his first match point, but at 5:4 he didn’t miss another chance to close the final out. Admittedly he made another double fault on his second match point, but on the third his first serve was good enough to force Djokovic’s backhand error. “Russians know how to celebrate,” Medvedev said. “Hopefully I will not get in the news. If I get, it’s going to be in a good way. But I’m going to definitely celebrate the next few days.”

   Medvedev’s route to his 13th title:
   1 Richard Gasquet 6-4, 6-3, 6-1
   2 Dominik Koepfer 6-4, 6-1, 6-2
   3 Pablo Andujar 6-0, 6-4, 6-3
   4 Daniel Evans 6-3, 6-4, 6-3
   Q Botic van de Zandschulp 6-3, 6-0, 4-6, 7-5
   S Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-4, 7-5, 6-2
   W Novak Djokovic 6-4, 6-4, 6-4

   Serve & volley: Medvedev 0, Djokovic 9/11
   

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