A Recap of How Daniil Medvedev Won the 2021 U.S. Open

Whilst there was a huge shock in the women’s singles at the recent US Open, as 18-year-old Emma Raducanu sent records tumbling in becoming the first British women to win the stateside Grand Slam since Virginia Wade in 1977, there was also a big upset in the men’s singles tournament.

Nobody would have bet against Novak Djokovic on sites like Betdaq prior to the tournament, as he headed to Flushing Meadows with his sights firmly set on an incredibly rare Calendar Slam, after winning the Australian Open, French Open and Wimbledon already this year. However, Daniil Medvedev crushed the Serbian’s hopes as he finally broke his Grand Slam duck. 

So, as the dust settles on the Russian’s maiden major victory and he looks to kick on in the Slams next season, let’s take a look back at how he won the 2021 renewal of the US Open. Read on to find out more! 

First round

Medvedev got his tournament underway with a first round match against Richard Gasquet at the Arthur Ashe Stadium, Flushing Meadows’ main court, and the Frenchman didn’t put up much of a fight as the 25-year-old dispatched of his unseeded opponent in straight sets, winning 6-4, 6-3, 6-1. 

Second round

Back on centre stage for the second round, Medvedev went up against Dominik Koepfer, and in similar fashion to his opening match, the Russian brushed aside his opposition in straight sets, beating the German 6-4, 6-1, 6-2 after one hour and 48 minutes.

Third round

Switching over to the Louis Armstrong Stadium for his third round encounter against Pablo Andújar, Medvedev won the first set without even dropping a game. The Spaniard put up more of a fight in the second set, but was broken once as the Russian went 2-0 up with a 6-4 victory. Andújar’s serve let him down again in the third and final set, as he was broken twice by Medvedev. 

Round of 16

On paper, Medvedev’s round of 16 opponent, British No.1 and 24th seed Dan Evans, posed to be the Russian’s toughest challenge yet. However, it proved to be a straight forward affair for the 25-year-old, as he won 6-3, 6-4, 6-3 in straight sets at the Arthur Ashe. 

Quarter-finals

Up against the surprise member of the last eight, Botic van de Zandschulp, Medvedev stormed to a two-set lead, winning 6-3, 6-0. However, the Dutchman wouldn’t go down that easily, and he became the first player to take a set from Medvedev in the tournament (6-4). However, any hope of a come back was quashed when the Russian won the fourth set 7-5. 

Semi-finals

The world number two was back to winning in straight sets against Felix Auger-Aliassime in the semi-finals. The Canadian was making Medvedev work hard for his place in the final in the first two sets, with the Russian narrowly winning 6-4, 7-5. However, he seemed to lose hope after going two sets down, and Medvedev took the final set easily, winning 6-2. 

Final

A clash between the current top two players in the world would have had tennis fans on the edge of their seats, as Medvedev and Djokovic met in the final. And whilst ‘Nole’ was the overwhelming favourite, Medvedev can never be ruled out on the hard courts and he proved why, beating the Serb 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 to win his first Slam. 

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