US Open Daily Preview: Novak Djokovic Plays Daniil Medvedev for the Men’s Singles Championship - UBITENNIS
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US Open Daily Preview: Novak Djokovic Plays Daniil Medvedev for the Men’s Singles Championship

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3 weeks ago

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Novak Djokovic on Friday, hanging up the phone on Ben Shelton (twitter.com/usopen)

On Sunday in New York, the men’s singles and women’s doubles championship matches will be played.

 

Two years ago in the final of this same tournament, Novak Djokovic was just one match away from the ever-elusive calendar-year Grand Slam.  But on that day, a nervous and drained Novak succumbed to Daniil Medvedev, who claimed his first and only Major title to date.  Now in 2023, Djokovic vies to avenge that painful loss in the same round of the same event, and win his record-extending 24th men’s singles title at a Major.

And in the women’s doubles championship match, it will be Gabriela Dabrowski and Erin Routliffe (16) vs. Laura Siegemund and Vera Zvonareva (12).  This is a second Major final for Dabrowski in women’s doubles, and she’s already a two-time Slam champ in mixed doubles.  Routliffe is a Major final debutante. 

Siegemund and Zvonareva won this tournament in 2020.  Siegemund also won mixed doubles at this event in 2016, while Zvonareva has three US Open titles in women’s doubles (2006, 2012, 2020), two in mixed doubles (2004, 2006), and of course was a runner-up here in singles back in 2010.

Daniil Medvedev (3) vs. Novak Djokovic (2) – 4:00pm on Arthur Ashe Stadium

Djokovic is 44-5 on the year, and has now reached all four Major finals in 2023, where he’s 2-1 thus far.  He’s won five of his six matches this fortnight in straight sets, and came back from two sets down in the third round against his fellow countryman, Laslo Djere.  Novak already has four titles this year (Adelaide, Australian Open, Roland Garros, Cincinnati), with his only loss in a final coming against Carlos Alcaraz at Wimbledon.  In his career, Djokovic is 95-40 in ATP finals, and 23-12 in Major finals.

However, Novak has a sorted history at this particular Major.  He is only 3-6 in US Open finals, which is a startling stat for a man easily considered the best male hard court player of all time.  By contrast, he’s a perfect 10-0 in Australian Open finals. 

And in the last three years, this tournament has been particularly frustrating for Djokovic.  In 2020, he was disqualified in the fourth round for hitting a linesperson in the neck with a tennis ball.  In 2021, he suffered the aforementioned loss to Medvedev while playing for the Grand Slam.  And in 2022, he was unable to enter the United States due to his vaccination status.

Medvedev is 55-11 in 2023, with five titles (Rotterdam, Doha, Dubai, Miami, Rome).  Four of those titles, all on hard courts, came between February and March of this year.  Daniil’s results had tapered off in recent months, and he uncharacteristically went just 3-2 on North American hard courts heading into this tournament.  But as he often does at hard court Majors, Medvedev built his confidence as the tournament progressed, dropping only three sets through six matches.

Ahead of his semifinal against Alcaraz, Medvedev stated he would have to play “11 out of 10” to defeat Carlitos.  And Daniil did just that, performing at an extremely high level in that match.  He won 82% of his first serve points, and saved eight of the nine break points he faced, showing how well he played the critical points in the match.

Medvedev is 20-13 in ATP finals, and just 1-3 in Major finals.  That includes two soul-crushing five-set losses to Rafael Nadal, and a one-sided straight-set loss to Djokovic, which occurred at the 2021 Australian Open.  Medvedev is yet to play anyone not named Nadal or Djokovic in a Major final.

Novak and Daniil have played 14 times across the last seven seasons, with Djokovic leading their head-to-head 9-5 overall, and 8-4 on hard courts.  At Majors, Novak leads 2-1.  After losing to Medvedev is the final of this event two years ago, Djokovic went on a revenge tour against him, winning their next four encounters.  But Daniil claimed their most recent meeting, six months ago in the semifinals of Dubai.

These are definitively the two best ATP hard court players of the past five years.  Since August of 2018, they have combined to win 34 titles on this surface, with 17 each.  But at this level, there is no comparison.  During that same span, Djokovic has won five hard court Majors, even with missing a few because of vaccine protocols, while Medvedev has procured just one.

On the last day of the 2023 US Open, Novak is the favorite to pick up yet another hard court Major.  And that’s not despite his history in New York, it’s because of it.  After what Djokovic has gone through in recent years at this event, including his 2021 loss to Medvedev, he’ll be exceedingly motivated to reassert his authority on Arthur Ashe Stadium.  And unlike 2021, Novak comes into this match fully fresh, after a straight-set victory over Ben Shelton on Friday. Plus, he’s on an 11-match winning streak, and has won 24 of his last 25 matches, dating back to the start of Roland Garros.  Simply put, Djokovic is currently at the height of his abilities.

And when’s he’s in this kind of form, an extraordinary level is required of his opponents.  No other player can consistently match Novak’s well-rounded skillset, and his superiority reveals itself even more so in the best-of-five format.  Daniil already had to reach an astounding level to advance beyond Alcaraz in the semifinals.  Maintaining that level for a second match in a row, and under the pressure that comes with a Major final, will be an extremely challenging task.  Djokovic will regain the World No.1 ranking on Monday regardless of Sunday’s outcome, but I expect him to do so as a 24-time Major champion.

Sunday’s full Order of Play is here.

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Roger Federer Targets Djokovic And Alcaraz For Laver Cup 2024 After Team World Thrashes Europe

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4 days ago

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25/09/2023

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Image via https://twitter.com/LaverCup/

Roger Federer says he would love to see the two highest-ranked players on the men’s Tour play in the next Laver Cup after this year’s tie ended in a crushing defeat for Europe. 

 

Team World, which is captained by John McEnroe, dominated the clash in Vancouver after surging to a 10-2 lead heading into the final day of competition. On Sunday they were required to win only one match to claim the overall title which they did in the opening doubles match. Ben Shelton and Frances Tiafoe ousted the European duo of Andrey Rublev and Hubert hurkacz 7-6(4), 7-6(5). 

“I am proud of these guys. We brought together a great group of some youth and experience, guys that have been here before. Everybody played well,” McEnroe said of his team’s 13-2 victory.
“It was an awesome week. We kicked some ass.”
“Winning is a whole lot better than losing. We struggled the first couple of years, and now we have tasted winning and it feels good.”

In contrast, Europe didn’t have much joy at the event with their only victory being from Casper Ruud who defeated Tommy Paul on the second day of the tie. Since the start of the competition in 2017, Europe won four consecutive titles but 2023 is the second year in a row that they have been defeated. 

Hoping that this losing streak will come to an end next year when the event is held in Berlin, Federer says he wishes Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz will play. Djokovic has played in the Laver Cup twice before but Alcaraz is yet to make his debut.

“They destroyed Team Europe. Team World played fantastic, they really brought the energy. Everybody brought a point, they were stronger in the doubles. In the singles too, they were moving fast, they were ready to go. They thoroughly deserved victory,” said Federer.
“I would like to see Novak again, Alcaraz and Novak on the same team. Sascha Zverev would be great for the German market. Someone like [Holger] Rune, that really hurt Team Europe. Rune and [Stefanos] Tsitsipas pulling out. [Daniil] Medvedev would be great. I like watching [Andrey] Rublev, and maybe someone will come through,” he added.

Federer is a co-founder of the Laver Cup with his management company Team 8 partnering up with Tennis Australia and Jorge Paulo Lemann to create the event. In 2019 the team competition was awarded ATP Tour status with a spot on the official calendar and access to marketing facilities under an agreement. However, ranking points are not awarded to players. 

Due to the nature of the format, only one match was played on Sunday with fans not getting the chance of watching any singles. Something two-time French Open champion Ruud admits is a problem. 

“Two of the times that I have played was maybe in a way a little bit unfortunate with only one deciding doubles (match) on Sunday,” Ruud commented.
“The crowd didn’t get to see a singles (match) after or whatever. That’s not in my hands to decide what the format looks like.’
“But last year in London was great in many ways because you had so many great players and it came down to almost the last match. When I watched on TV the first series, it was so exciting because Roger played a couple of times, the final match of the Sunday and clutched it for Team Europe. It’s been a couple of years without playing that last singles match. But it’s a great initiative. Me, as a golf fan, watching the Ryder Cup all my life in my childhood, it’s great for tennis to have this event.”

The 2024 Laver Cup will be held at the Mercedes-Benz Arena in Berlin between September 20-22. 

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India’s Sumit Nagal Receives Sponsorship Boost After Revelling Financial Struggles

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1 week ago

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21/09/2023

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Image via https://twitter.com/nagalsumit/

A leading food and drink company has pledged to support India’s highest-ranked men’s player who was unable to train at his usual facility in Germany earlier this year due to a lack of money. 

 

Earlier this week world No.159 Sumit Nagal made a public plea for financial support to help him continue his career as a tennis player. In recent years he has been based at the Nansel Tennis Academy in Germany but was unable to train there during the first three months of the 2023 season due to a lack of funds. During this period he relied on his friends, including former player Somdev Devvarman, to help maintain his fitness. 

“If I look at my bank balance, I have what I had at the beginning of the year. It is 900 euros. I did get a bit of help. Mr Prashant Sutar is helping me with MAHA Tennis Foundation and I also get monthly (salary) from IOCL but I don’t have any big sponsor,” Nagal told the Press Trust of India.
“I am investing whatever I am making. The yearly cost where I travel with one coach is costing me around Rs 8 million to Rs 10 million (90,000-113,000 euros) and that is just with one travelling coach (no physio). Whatever I have made I have already invested,” he added.

Nagal, who is 26 years old, has reached the semi-finals of better at five tournaments on the lower-level Challenger Tour so far this season. His only Grand Slam result was at the US Open where he lost in the first round of qualifying to Taro Daniel. It was at the US Open where he took a set off Roger Federer before losing in 2019. 

Despite being the only player from his country to be ranked in the top 400, Nagal is currently not part of the Target Olympics Podium Scheme. An initiative set up by the Indian government to provide support to their top athletes.

After learning about Nagal’s ongoing struggles on the Tour, a leading company has decided to support the tennis player by signing a three-year deal with him. Gatorade specializes in sports drinks and is manufactured by PepsiCo. Under the deal, Nagal will receive support with his recovery and nutrition from experts at the Gatorade Sports Science Institute (GSSI).  

“I am deeply moved and grateful to join hands with Gatorade. This association comes to me at a pivotal time, and I am thankful my hard work and passion is getting recognized and appreciated. With Gatorade by my side, I am sure I will reach new heights and give it my all both on and off the court,” the Indo-Asian News Service quoted Nagal as saying on Thursday. 

Speaking about the new partnership, Ankit Agarwal from PepsiCo India has hailed the collaboration. Agarwal is the company’s Associate Director of Energy & Hydration. 

“Sumit is a role model for the new-gen athletes of India with his career being a true example of hard work and sweat that makes talent shine,” he said.
“As a brand that is dedicated to supporting athletes in removing barriers to sporting success, we are delighted to welcome Sumit to the Gatorade squad.”

Nagal has been ranked as high as No.122 in the world. So far in his career, he has won four Challenger titles with two of those occurring this year in Italy and Finland. 

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(VIDEO): Malaga Line-Up Set As Davis Cup Most Unpredictable Tournament In History

UbiTennis founder Ubaldo Scanagatta explains why any of the eight teams in Malaga could win November’s Davis Cup Finals

Published

1 week ago

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19/09/2023

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(@DavisCup - Twitter)

The Davis Cup quarter-final line-up is set after an incredible Group Stage over Bologna, Split, Manchester and Valencia.

 

Now eight teams remain including Novak Djokovic’s Serbia, Great Britain and Australia.

However surprise teams such as the Netherlands, Finland and the Czech Republic will also appear in the quarter-finals.

Ten-time champions Great Britain will face Serbia with the winners taking on the winner of the quarter-final between Italy and the Netherlands.

In the other half of the draw Canada will be heavy favourites against Finland while the Czech Republic face Australia.

The final eight tournament will take place in Malaga and will take place between the 21st and the 26th of November.

However this year’s Davis Cup could be the most unpredictable version in the tournament’s history with there being no Spain or USA.

It really could be anyone’ tournament with Tennis’ most prestigious team competition up for grabs in November.

In this video UbiTennis founder Ubaldo Scanagatta explains why this year’s Davis Cup finals could be the most unpredictable edition of all-time and why any of the teams could win the title.

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