Daniil Medvedev does not get tired of the finals – Sport – Kommersant

The first finalist of the Miami Open, the prestigious Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) Masters 1000 tournament with a prize pool of $8.8 million, was Russian Daniil Medvedev, who beat his compatriot Karen Khachanov in three sets. With his 23rd victory in his last 24 matches, Medvedev reached the decisive stage of the fifth consecutive ATP competition.

The material that announced this semi-final on the ATP official website and in which the future rivals exchanged compliments was called “Two friends, two finalists.” Daniil Medvedev and Karen Khachanov have really known each other since childhood, although they do not meet very often at professional tournaments. In eight years of regular performances at the level of the ATP Tour, their paths crossed only for the fifth time, and before the start of the current meeting in this series, Medvedev led 3:1. Now his chances were also quoted a little higher, although one important point should have been kept in mind. At the last two Grand Slams, the US and Australian Opens, Khachanov outperformed his old buddy, reaching the semi-finals twice. Yes, and a confident victory over the third racket of the world Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas, won by Khachanov this week, once again said that the level of his current game clearly corresponds to the top ten, which he came close to due to reaching the semi-finals.

The first set was completely equal. Khachanov won the lot and, having chosen the technique, immediately earned two break points, which, however, he did not convert. Medvedev, in turn, gave 13 points in a row at the reception, but in the eighth game he managed to take someone else’s serve. Khachanov answered this with a set point, and soon after with his break in the ninth game. As a result, the fate of the game was decided by a tie-break, in which, when drawing the tenth point, Khachanov made an offensive mistake, it would seem, in a completely won situation when performing a right hand.

Before the start of the second game, Medvedev left the court for a few minutes. And when he returned, he lost the rhythm of the game and began to make inaccuracies, allowing Khachanov to lead – 3:0 with one break. Medvedev’s attempts to even the score were unsuccessful. In the fifth game, Khachanov played one break point, and played the next two games perfectly on his serve.

It was impossible to predict the outcome of the decisive game in advance. Khachanov not only served well, but sometimes outplayed his opponent in those very protracted draws, where, in theory, Medvedev should have had an advantage. However, in the end, the nominal favorite turned out to be a little stronger, who managed to make a decisive break in the fourth game. At the match point, the Russians presented the fans with a breathtaking protracted rally, in which Khachanov got a back kick to the net between his legs, but this ball also remained with Medvedev. Having won a total of five points less (88 vs. 93), but winning – 7:6 (7:5), 3:6, 6:3 in 2 hours and 18 minutes, he reached the final stage at the ATP tournaments for the fifth time in a row and now, if he wins, he will become the fourth racket of the world, beating the Norwegian Kasper Ruud in the ranking. But Khachanov can bring this Miami Open to his asset. On Monday, he will rise in the world classification by five positions at once – to eleventh place.

Evgeny Fedyakov