In the semi-finals of the Nitto ATP Finals tennis final tournament, Daniil Medvedev lost to Jannik Sinner

The decisive match of the Nitto ATP Finals, the final tournament of the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) with a prize fund of $15 million, which ends in Turin, will take place without the participation of Daniil Medvedev. This became clear after he lost to the Italian Jannik Sinner in three games in the semifinals. A Kommersant correspondent watched the game, which aroused great interest in Italy, from the press box of the Pala Alpitour hall. Evgeniy Fedyakov.

On Friday, Jannik Sinner was spotted at the group stage match between Daniil Medvedev and Carlos Alcaraz. With a black hood over his red-haired head, he watched potential competitors play with coach Darren Cahill. It is unlikely, however, that this couple enriched their knowledge with any tactical nuances or strategic revelations. After all, the Italian won both Alcaraz and Medvedev twice in a row this season, and the last time he met the Russian was quite recently at a tournament in Vienna.

It was a classic case when the chances of the opponents before entering the court were assessed as concrete 50/50 – both in terms of the level of play and in terms of statistics. The fact that Medvedev is capable of showing perhaps his best tennis on indoor courts has been known for a long time. But Sinner is also very good in the gym; this year he has the best win-loss ratio in the ATP – 16:1. Having won two titles under the roof (in Montpellier and Vienna), he suffered his only defeat there precisely from Medvedev – nine months ago in the final of Rotterdam.

However, the current Sinner is no match for the February one.

Having added not so much in the skill of hitting the ball, but in stamina, the ability to gather himself, to make the right decisions at critical moments, this tall young man of thin build with a flexible body, quick legs and skillful hands is maturing literally before our eyes. Medvedev probably realized the strength of his opponent, although such understanding sometimes does not help, but hinders.

“If earlier you could hold the ball with Yannick, now you need to attack him, try to finish the plays yourself,” the Russian explained after the game. And perhaps this is precisely what in this case had a fatal impact at the most decisive moment.

Medvedev got the first chance to make a break. Already in the second game, Sinner, having 40:0 on his serve, unexpectedly reached a break point, which, however, he confidently saved. In the third game, the Russian found himself in a similar situation, who, in turn, hit the net from the right on a break point. Looking ahead, it should be noted that Medvedev’s forehand was not ideal. 25 unforced errors when executing a forehand for such a match is, to put it mildly, a bit much.

Having lost the first set, the Russian generally continued to stick to his line. Being prepared for the pressure of the public, who behaved emotionally, but not at all angry, he calmly held his serve. Sinner had to win back a break point in the eighth game. The level of play during that period of the match was equally high. There were long exchanges of blows in which the Italian excelled, and sometimes Medvedev was better, as, for example, in the tiebreaker – during the third point, which consisted of 22 touches on the ball. But in the end the game went to the Russian, who forced Sinner to make a mistake on the second set point.

And then there was an unexpected medical time-out, carried out by Medvedev together with a doctor in the tribune room, and there was his unexpected double fault, only the second of the match, on a break point in the second game. After her, the Russian grabbed his head with his right hand. This emotional gesture, he said, was intended for coach Gilles Cervara and the entire team. Whether they understood this pantomime or not is unclear to Medvedev himself. But in any case, it was at this moment that the turning point came in the match. Feeling that victory was close, Sinner rushed forward and won four of the remaining five games.

“I didn’t have any injury as such,” the Russian later said at a press conference. “My right thigh just hurt a little during the tiebreak, and the question was whether to take a break, since I was on the rise. But I decided that I had to run a lot and needed to call a physiotherapist. Was it worth the wait? I don’t know, it’s a tough question. Then my serve let me down, and with Yannick this is unacceptable. So, probably next time after winning a tiebreaker I won’t call a physiotherapist.”

The Kommersant correspondent asked Medvedev to clarify whether he regrets that fatal double mistake, made out of a desire to take a risk and execute the second serve a little stronger than usual.

“Yes, I tried to serve the second with all my strength, and it was a conscious decision. Sometimes it bears fruit, although in this case I don’t regret it at all. In the same way, I could have made a double on a weaker second serve, and Sinner would have had a better chance of receiving it well,” Medvedev said.

As a result – 3:6, 7:6 (7:4), 1:6 in 2 hours 30 minutes. Having a better first serve hit rate – 63% versus 58%, including in the second set – 81% versus 54%, the Russian still lost to the Italian, who, with the support of his audience, demonstrated excellent consistency combined with spectacular aggressiveness before the start of Sunday’s final can in no way be considered an outsider.

Medvedev, who, as he left the court after the end of the match, thanked the audience for his objectivity with applause, ended his fifth consecutive season in the top ten. Having won five titles and lost four finals, he will finish third in the rankings – one position lower than in 2021. But compared to last season, which the Russian finished only seventh, he has made progress. Moreover, Medvedev collected few ranking points in the first month and a half of the season, so he will have the opportunity to increase his total at the Australian Open.