Medvedev Falls Short as Djokovic Claims US Open Victory

 Medvedev Makes Djokovic Cry Tears of Joy in the US Open Final

Russian tennis player Daniil Medvedev lost to Serbian Novak Djokovic in three sets in the final of the US Open. As a result, Medvedev was unable to repeat his success from two years ago when he won his first and only Grand Slam title against the same opponent. Djokovic now has 24 Grand Slam titles in his collection, surpassing Serena Williams in terms of the number of titles won.

Djokovic's Greatness

The US Open took place in New York from August 28 to September 10. Russian and Belarusian players competed in a neutral status, with their country names not mentioned in official protocols. During the award ceremony, the Serbian flag was present, but the Russian flag was absent. Two years ago, Medvedev made Djokovic cry when the Serbian had the chance to achieve a rare feat in tennis - winning a calendar Grand Slam. He only needed to win one match against Medvedev. However, the Russian played an incredible game in the final of the 2021 US Open, not allowing Djokovic to win a single set. Tears welled up in Djokovic's eyes even before the match ended when he realized he had no chance.

Djokovic Cried Again, but this time after showing astonishing composure, he went to the net to receive congratulations from Medvedev for his 24th career victory in a major tournament. Djokovic did not compete for a calendar Grand Slam this year as he lost in the Wimbledon final to Carlos Alcaraz. However, his success in New York allowed him to equal Margaret Court's record for the number of victories in major tournaments. In terms of results achieved in the Open Era, when amateurs and professionals were given equal rights, Djokovic is now the best, surpassing Serena Williams and her 23 titles.

Medvedev's Chance

After defeating Alcaraz in the semifinals, Medvedev said he played a 12 out of 10 match. However, Djokovic's exceptional focus and determination from the first points made it clear that Medvedev would need to surpass his own level to win. He couldn't do it in the first set as Djokovic took his serve early on and confidently won the set 6-3.

But in the second set, Medvedev managed to step up his game. In the middle of the set, after a series of long rallies, Djokovic seemed to struggle with his physical condition - he took longer breaks between serves, once dropped his racket, and after one exhausting exchange of shots, he lay down on the court, breathing heavily. Medvedev came close to success, earning a set point towards the end. However, the 36-year-old Serbian, who has experienced numerous similar crises before, managed to escape this time as well. He saved the set point and won the tiebreak 7-6 (7-5).

Before the third set, Djokovic had the opportunity to refresh himself, and he showed no signs of fatigue afterward. Medvedev, on the other hand, played without the same fire, clearly devastated by missed opportunities. Only at 2-5, when it seemed there was no chance left for the Russian, did he manage to hold his serve and then challenge Djokovic's serve. Nevertheless, it was Djokovic's day as he won the set 6-3, completing the US Open final with his first match point.

During the award ceremony, Medvedev acknowledged his opponent, whom he has known since their early days in professional tennis. Djokovic had helped Medvedev when he was ranked far outside the top 100. "I think I have had a great career, but I have 20 championship titles in regular tournaments, while you have 24 Grand Slam titles," Medvedev said with a mixture of laughter and sadness on his face. He also lamented that he couldn't celebrate his wedding anniversary with a victory, as he did two years ago.

Nevertheless, Medvedev's performance at the US Open can be considered a significant success. It was his best result in Grand Slam tournaments this season. His victorious match against Alcaraz, the current world number one, is considered one of the highlights of his career. Among the other Russian male players in the US Open singles event, Andrey Rublev reached the quarterfinals, where he lost to Medvedev. Other Results

In the women's singles event, American Emma Raducanu emerged as the champion. This was her first Grand Slam title. In the final, she defeated Belarusian second seed Aryna Sabalenka 2-6, 6-3, 6-2. It is noteworthy that this season, the four Grand Slam tournaments had different champions - Sabalenka won the Australian Open, Iga Swiatek from Poland triumphed at the French Open, and Marketa Vondrousova from the Czech Republic was victorious at Wimbledon.

Among Russian tennis players, the best result in the singles category was achieved by Daria Kasatkina, who reached the fourth round. There, the country's top seed lost to Sabalenka - 1:6, 3:6. Mirroring her success at the French Open and Wimbledon, Mirra Andreava failed to make the same impact at the opening of this season. The young Russian tennis player made it to the second round but was easily defeated by the future tournament winner.
However, former world number two and finalist of the 2010 US Open, Vera Zvonareva, achieved an excellent result. The 39-year-old Russian, together with German player Laura Siegemund, reached the final in the doubles category. However, the Russian-German duo lost to Gabriela Dabrowski from Canada and Erin Routliffe from New Zealand - 6:7 (9:11), 3:6.