Russia’s Daniil Medvedev has clinched his first piece of silverware in 2020 after battling back from a set down to win the Paris Masters title on Sunday.
The 24-year-old produced some of his best tennis throughout his 5-7, 6-4, 6-1, win over Germany’s Alexander Zverev. A player who was on a 13-match winning streak and had beaten him in five out of their six previous meetings. Nevertheless, Medvedev prevailed in a match of fine margins with the help of 14 aces and 35 winners to clinch his first title since the 2019 Shanghai Masters 13 months ago.
“It’s great, I’m really happy. I don’t always show it after but I am always really happy to win matches,” Medvedev said during his on-court interview.
“Before this tournament I wasn’t in the best form. There had been zero finals this year and I was complaining to my wife ‘oh my god, I don’t have the level, I’m playing so bad….’
“I was playing really good during this tournament, especially today.” He added.
Locking horns on the Tour for the seventh time in their careers, there was little difference between the two top 10 players throughout the opening set. Both Zverev and Medvedev were impressive behind their first serves with each of them winning around 80%. It looked as if the proceedings were heading into a tiebreak until Medvedev faltered at the worst possible moment.
Serving at 5-6, two unforced errors from the Russian moved Zverev to a mini lead of 30-0. Gaining in momentum and increasing his intensity, the world No.7 then hit a forehand passing shot which rewarded him three set points. Failing to convert the first two, it was third time lucky for Zverev after a Medvedev forehand misfired and landed beyond the baseline. Prompting a roar of celebration from the German.
Clinching the lead, Zverev continued to face stiff opposition from his opponent who was playing all or nothing tennis which paved the way for a high quality showdown. During the third game of the second set, he successfully fended off four break points during a marathon 15-minute service game. Despite the fight, it was not enough to contain his rival.
After preserving Medvedev finally secured a breakthrough during the closing stages of the second frame. A perfectly timed drop shot followed by a mistake from across the court enabled him to break for the first time in the match for 5-4. Surging in momentum, he levelled with a love service game.
Continuing with his trend of power hitting and relentless defence, Medvedev dictated from the onset in the decider as he clinched three games in a row against his tiring rival. Who looked absolutely subdued compared to earlier stages of their encounter. Racing towards the finish line Medvedev sealed victory with the help of a Zverev double fault.
“After the first set I could have given up. Sasha was serving and playing well. I just stayed there and raised my level. Started to put pressure on him and it worked. He dropped his level a little bit.” The new champion commented on his latest performance
The win also has sentimental value for Medvedev, who has clinched his first ever trophy on French soil. At the age of 18 he moved from Moscow to the country in order to develop his career and is currently coached by Gilles Cervara.
“This is my first title in France and third at Masters level. I’m just super happy and I hope I can continue this,” he said.
It is only the second time in Medvedev’s career that he has come back from a set down to defeat a top 10 player. His first triumph was over Novak Djokovic in Cincinnati last year. He is the fourth player from his country to have won the Paris title after Karen Khachanov, Yevgeny Kafelnikov and Marat Safin.
