World No. 3 Daniil Medvedev had predicted that he would need to play “11 out of 10” to get past defending champion and top-seeded Carlos Alcaraz at the US Open. (More Tennis News)
How did Medvedev rate😼 ཧhis performance against Alcaraz in the semifinals in New York on Friday night?
“I played 12 out of 10,” Medvedev declared after eliminating Alcaraz 7-6 (3), 6-1, 3-6, 6-3 to set up a rematch in the final against the indefatigable Novak Djokovic. Medvedev had won his lone major championship at Flus🐈hing Meadows in 2021 by defeating 23-time Slam winner Djokovic in that year’s titl🐼e match.
That had prevented Djokovic from completing what would have been�� the first calendar-year Grand Slam in men’s ten🏅nis since 1969.
Even before the start𒊎 of these two weeks, tennis enthusiasts had been anticipating a Djokovic versus Alcaraz showdown on the last day of the event. Theirs is an inter-generational rivalry — Djokovic is 36; Alcaraz 20 — that has fascinated the tennis world in recent months.
A meeting in New York on Sunday would have been a rematch of the final of the Cincinnati Masters last month, won by Djokovic, and of the fina🅠l at Wimbledon in July, won by Alcaraz, and of a semifinal at the French Open in June, won by Djokovic.
But it was not to be.
Medvedev stood in the way.
Alcaraz — who will relinquish the No. 1 ranking to Dꩵjokovic no matter what happens on Sunday — had been trying to become the first man to cla👍im consecutive championships in New York since Roger Federer won five in a row from 2004-08.
Instead, i🅠t will be Medvedev, a 27-year-old from Russia, who wi✃ll be appearing in his third US Open final in five years and his fifth major title match in all.
He lost to Rafael Nadal in New York in 2019, and to Djok📖ovic at the Australian Open in 2021 and 2022.
“The challenge is that you play a guy that won 23 Grand Slams, and I have only one,” Medvedev said, looking ahead to taking on Djokovic. “When I beat him here, I managed to play better than myself, so I need to do it again. There is no♈ other way.”
Medvedev had lost to Alcaraz twice this season, including in th𝔉e Wimbledon semif⛄inals. Those head-to-head results left Medvedev concerned.
“Before the match, for sure, a lot🍃 of doubts,” the Russian said.
But he was up to the task.
There were moments of brilliance from both men, displays of athleticism, instincts and shotmaking that brought fa𝓰ns out of their seats.
Also often jumping up from his spot in a corner guest box at Arthur Ashe Stadium was Juan Carlos Ferrero, the 2003 French Open champion who is Alcaraz’sꦦ coach. Ferrero was looking nervous throughout the second set as the match appeared to be getting away from his guy, keeping up a constant patter of instructions and exhortations in Spanish.
It all helped, if only briefly. Alcaraz really got going in the third set, and his net-charging tactics — including plenty of serve-and-volleying — were effective. He won 54 of 70 points t🐷hat he finished at the net.
Medvedev served about as well as ever. He saved eight of the nine break points he faced and then often got the better of the match’s sho🅰rtest points, winning 🌳101 of the 174 exchanges that lasted four strokes or fewer.
And Alcaraz waܫs not quite at his usual best from the baseline.
“We don’t see him do th💛is often,” Medvedev said. “He started to miss a little bit.”
The final twist came with Alcar💜aꦺz serving down 3-2 in the fourth set. It was a lengthy game that lasted nearly 15 minutes, filled with a ton of impressive returning by the lanky Medvedev, whose long arms seem to get his racket to everything.
When one Medvedev return landed out, Alcaraz looked up and put his hands together, as if to say, “Than𒐪k 💯you!”
But Alcaraz mis🃏sed one volley, and then couldn’t quite deliver as he reached to try to get to a dipping, angled backhand return. That gave Medvedev the lead and an edge he would not relinquish, even if he did need to put aside a pair of double-faults while serving for the victory as some spectators called out to distract him.
“That’s not so nice. But I’m happy 🗹it didn’t help them,” Medvedev said. “They can go to sleep now.”
(With AP inputs)
