Russian Daniil Medvedev has become one of the smartest players in the men’s game and like one of his nation’s great chess players he invariably selects the right move.
The 24-year-old will face Austria’s Dominic Thiem in the US Open semi-final today with the winner being tipped to go on and lift their first Grand Slam title.
He is yet to drop a set so far, and fuelled by the experience of reaching last year’s final against Rafael Nadal, Medvedev is looking increasingly hard to stop.
On Wednesday, Medvedev defeated compatriot and childhood friend Andrey Rublev 7-6 (6), 6-3, 7-6 (5) in 2hr 27min.
Former champion Mats Wilander says the third seed’s ability to out-smart opponents is a major weapon.
“Daniil doesn’t play the scoreboard, he plays tactics, he plays momentum and he just keeps plugging away,” Eurosport analyst Wilander said looking ahead to today’s clash.
“He’s a chess player. He hits the shot that he thinks is right for the moment, not because of where the score is. He’s just a really good tactician on court and he’s going to look for solutions in any situation.”
Three-time Grand Slam runner-up Thiem leads their head-to-head 2-1 but Medvedev prevailed easily in their last meeting, an outdoor hardcourt clash in Canada last year.
His unpredictable game has made him one of the most awkward opponents on the Tour.
“I don’t see why he can’t win a Grand Slam,” Wilander said. “There are some players that don’t like to play against Medvedev because he has such an awkward style so he’s going to be winning matches and have good head-to-heads against very good players.
“It doesn’t matter who they are, they won’t like playing against him. He is building that reputation that it is tough to play against him and he doesn’t give you anything for free.
“You really don’t know what he’s going to do next with the second serve, you don’t know when he’s going to smack the forehand or push it back. He’s very unpredictable, the only predictable thing is that he’s going to play smart.”
While Medvedev was booed last year by Flushing Meadows crowds and in the past was known for being volatile, Wilander said his personality is good for the sport.
“Every moment of the match he seems to be completely engaged emotionally,” seven-time major winner Wilander said. “I like the way he is in court — angry, smiling, he looks like he’s having a really good time and enjoying his tennis.”
Thiem predicts ‘great’ clash
In the absence of top seed Novak Djokovic, who lost by default in the fourth round, and Nadal and Roger Federer — who opted out of this year’s tournament — the men’s draw will have its first new Grand Slam champion in six years on Sunday.
Thiem had three chances to become a major champion while Medvedev had a two-set lead over Nadal before he lost in last year’s US Open final, which according to Thiem was one of the “better Slam finals ever”.
“I would say that he comes very close to the big three players in terms that he can play his top level, for doesn’t matter how long,” said Thiem, who lost two French Open finals to Nadal and this year’s Australian Open title clash to Djokovic.
“That’s going to be really, really difficult. But I’m looking forward to that one. I think it’s going to be a big stage, even if it’s without fans. It’s going to be a great semi-final.”
Thiem also spoke about how he finds it difficult to maintain intensity in the absence of fans.
Thiem took down Australian Alex de Minaur 6-1, 6-2, 6-4 in Wednesday’s final match on the Arthur Ashe Stadium, which would in previous years be bustling with a crowd of close to 24,000.
But no fans are allowed at this year’s Grand Slam due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
“It’s not easy mentally to keep all the time the 100% energy,” Thiem said. “Everything else I (have) got used to.
“But there are some situations in every match basically where it would be nice to have the crowd just to keep the energy up, just to celebrate great points, that it doesn’t feel that bad if you (are) going through a tough period.
“That was not easy to get used to. But it’s an unique situation. Now I’m in the semis, it was my fifth match today so I got used to it. (But) there’s still situations where it’s difficult or where the energy of the crowd would help.”
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