Playing in his 27th Grand Slam title match and fourth at the US Open, the left-hander looked to be cruising to victory when he led by two sets and a break in the third. But in a stunning turnaround, Medvedev turned the tables on Rafael Nadal and grabbed the third and fourth sets to force a decider.
The two-time Masters 1000 winner failed to ride on his momentum though, squandering an early break point in the fifth. He then wasted another at 4-5, allowing Rafael Nadal to extend his perfect record in five-set Grand Slam finals to 3-0.
Talking with Barbara Schett in an episode of Tennis Legends on Eurosport, Daniil Medvedev said that he rued missing a routine forehand at 4-5 in the fifth.
But the Russian was quick to point out that he did not have too many regrets from his defeat against Rafael Nadal, as he never led at any point in the match except at 1-0 in the fifth.
Daniil Medvedev talks about ’that match’ against Rafael Nadal at the ATP Finals
Daniil Medvedev, however, said he was massively disappointed at losing another match against Rafael Nadal - the one at the season-ending ATP Finals in London.
When asked which match he would like to play again, the young Russian had no qualms in admitting that it was the Rafael Nadal match at the ATP Finals.
Indeed, most would agree that Daniil Medvedev had no business giving the match to Rafael Nadal. He was the better player for large swathes, and ought to have closed out the win after eking out a match point at 5-1 in the third.
But Medvedev couldn’t convert that chance, and Rafael Nadal recouped both breaks of serve before triumphing in a deciding set tiebreak.
0 votes
