Tenis is definitely one of the most unpredictable sport disciplines out there. Sure, we know ATP had three top players who have been on the top for quite a while. We are talking about Djokovic, Federer, and Nadal. Nowadays, it is quite easy to spot some winds of change that will reshape the competition to the liking of new generations. If you take a look at the list, you will see famous names like Zverev, Tsitsipas, Rublev, Sinner, and Berrettini.
Without any doubt, this is the perfect time for us to see some excitement. We are talking about one of the factors that will make difference by creating a new environment where the new generation will have a chance to make something truly big. As is the case with anything in life, new generations are there to replace older ones. So, it’s no surprise that we are bound to witness this massive change in tennis. Thankfully, this is something that’s happening right now.
Newly crowned US Open champion Russian Daniil Medvedev and Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas have joined world ranking leader Novak Djokovic among the qualifiers for the ATP Finals. Medvedev became the latest Grand Slam champion when he foiled Djokovic’s quest for the record-setting 21st title in this type of tournament and would have left the Serb as the first man to complete a Grand Slam in the same year in 52 years. Sadly, his record couldn’t be fulfilled fully because of the defeat he suffered in the last match.
The ATP Finals will be played by the top eight singles and doubles players. The Russian won the tournament that ended the season in 2024, when the competition was held in London, before moving to Turin (Italy). And whoever is taking advantage of this season to make the online bets, you can find betting sites for Canada (but also other countries) on OLBG.com.
Medvedev finally reached his first Grand Slam title of his career in his third final, confirming his perfect moment on the circuit. Medvedev became the first tennis player on the NextGen call to win a Slam. In addition, he took revenge on Djokovic, responsible for a tough 3-0 defeat of the Russian in this year’s Australian Open final. After the match, both players congratulated each other on their performance and they shared a moment where Medvedev said that his opponent is one of the best in the sport.
But the cost of defeat to Serbian Novak Djokovic was much higher than a runner-up in one of the biggest tournaments on the circuit. Djokovic arrived at this year’s US Open to beat historic men’s tennis scores. He could become only the second man in the open tennis era to close the Grand Slam, the so-called “calendar-year,” that is to say, winning the four main tournaments in the world in the same season. He succeeded in Australia, at Roland Garros and also at Wimbledon. All that was left was the US Open.
Only the Australian Rod Laver achieved such a feat, in 1969, in the professional tennis era, which began the year before. Present in the tribunes of the US Open center court, Laver also “closed” the Grand Slam in 1962, as well as the American Don Budge, in 1938, still in the sport’s amateur era. For these two great winning streaks, the Australian is considered by many to be the greatest in tennis history.
In a decade dominated by the famous “Big Three,” the trio’s nickname composed of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic, it was difficult to imagine a Grand Slam final without the biggest winners of the men’s bracket. However, with the COVID-19 pandemic and the slower physical recovery of Federer and Nadal, what was an exception became less uncommon. We can see that all of these factors have a major influence on the results we have seen a couple of weeks ago. Someone outside “Big Three” has managed to win a grand slam.
The great game that guaranteed the Grand Slam
In the long-awaited final this Sunday, Medvedev started the match showing part of his firepower that would make Djokovic suffer over three sets. He broke the favorite’s serve in the first game of the final. The solid backcourt game was allied to the decisive service. The Serb barely saw the color of the ball in each rival’s serve game. We can see that Medvedev’s serve in this match was probably his best.
Some legends of the sport have compared it to some of the biggest players in history like Andy Roddick. The proper serving was an ace in the hole for the first part of the match. However, Djokovic has managed to gather his strength and return with some great serving as well. Still, Russian has managed to win the first set relatively easily, with one break in advantage.
Appearing nervous in the first games, the number 1 in the world climbed a step and started to serve well, too, defining the expected balance of the final, despite being a break behind on the scoreboard. Even so, he suffered in front of Medvedev on the serve. Djokovic won just three points in the Russian service games. So, you can see that situation remained pretty much the same for the rest of the set.
The second set was more even, at least in the first games. Until the Serb became annoyed with his mistakes in the fourth game and destroyed his racket on the ground. Medvedev broke Djokovic’s serve then and opened the necessary lead to forward the partial and make 2-0 in the decision. Once again, we can see that quality serving was the advantage Russian had over a Serb.
Plus, Novak’s emotional outburst played a big role in him losing concentration until the rest of the match. We can even see that he shed a tear at some moment. How can you blame him? We are talking about a match that can define his whole career, and make the opinion about him being the best much more solid. Sadly, we can see that this does not happen at the end of the match.
The Russian tennis player started the third as he did the first: breaking the favorite’s serve. As if the excellent advantage wasn’t enough, Medvedev scored another break in the sequence, opening an unexpected 4/0 in the set. At this point, the Serbian had already resorted to different strategies to overcome the formidable rival: slices, leaves, serve, and volley. Nothing went right for the favorite, who had a good game. But that doesn’t mean that Medvedev wasn’t on top of his game. It is practically the opposite. Without any doubt, this was one of the best matches he played in his career. Sure, we cannot say that for Djokovic.
On the other hand, everything worked for Medvedev. Even when he played poorly, with decisions that even knocked his game strategy down, the balls died on the other side of the court. To help, Djokovic wasted incredible chances. Until the seventh game came, and the Russian made a double foul on his first match point. Unfocused, he failed again in the service and lost the service for the first time in the match, heating up once and for all in the heat of the fans, who wanted more game.
However, when serving again to close the game and the tournament, the Russian showed more excellent balance, even committing a new double fault in yet another match point. In a unique opportunity, he took great care in the service to seal the most significant victory of his career. At the end of the match, the picture of these two exceptional players holding silverware was truly magnificent. We have no doubt these two will have many more great matches in the future.
