Daniil Medvedev left the U.S. Open and ended his unbelievable hard-court summer with a silver platter.
He didn’t hand Rafael Nadal the title on one.
Nadal lifted the U.S. Open trophy for a fourth time on Sunday night and won his 19th Grand Slam, but not before what looked like a lopsided affair turned into an instant classic. The Spaniard led by two sets to love and a break, watched Medvedev erase the entire deficit, and then finally recovered to win a grueling five-setter 7-5, 6-3, 5-7, 4-6, 6-4 in four hours and 49 minutes.
“The last three hours of the match [were] very, very intense,” Nadal assured. “Very tough mentally and physically, too.”
For a while it looked like the match would not even go too far past the two-hour mark. Nadal, who had mostly coasted through his entire draw just as he did en route to the 2017 U.S. Open title, took the first two sets and broke Medvedev for a 3-2 advantage in the third. Given that this summer and this tournament had already been incredibly draining for the Russian, it looked like he was finally left for dead.
Instead, Medvedev broke right back for 3-3 and improbably stole the set with another break at 6-5. Suddenly Medvedev–who had been booed throughout the fortnight and again when walked into Arthur Ashe Stadium for the final–had the fans chanting his name. They wanted a fourth set and they got it. They wanted a fifth set. They got that, too, after Medvedev earned the only break of the fourth at 5-4.
“I have to say I’m being myself,” explained the 23-year-old, who gave the crowd the finger during his third-round victory over Feliciano Lopez and gave them the business in his on-court interviews following both his third-round and fourth-round wins. “Talking about bad things, not proud of them, but I was being myself. Talking about good things and getting the crowd back…I should be surprised.
“Again, I was being myself. I was fighting for every point. I think they appreciated it. As I said, being break down in the third, I won the game, and I felt that these guys wanted some more tennis. They were cheering me up like crazy. I knew I have to leave my heart out there for them also. For myself first of all, but for them also. I think they saw it and they appreciate it. I’m thankful to them for this….
“It was a pleasure to be out there tonight. They were sometimes cheering my name, sometimes they were going for Rafa. I think it was just because the arena is so huge, there were so many people cheering both names, it was like changing all the time. The atmosphere was the best of my life, I have to say.”
Medvedev’s effort was certainly the best of his life, too, but it was not quite enough to get across the finish line against one of tennis’ all-time greats. Nadal finally came up with an answer to his opponent’s consistency and tenacity, seizing a crucial break in the fifth set from basically out of nowhere. Medvedev led 40-0 at 2-2 but missed an easy forehand that would have finished the game at love and went on to get broken.
Although the 33-year-old extended his lead to 5-2, sealing the deal was appropriately far from simple. A never-say-die Medvedev got one of the breaks back for 3-5, held for 4-5 after saving two championship points, and even earned a break point to get back on serve at 5-5. Nadal, however, saved it by forcing the world No. 5 into an error with a strong forehand and two points later he capitalize on his third championship point with a big first serve that Medvedev sent well past the baseline.
“These kind of matches in the final of Grand Slam makes the match more special,” the second seed said. “The way that the match became very dramatic at the end, that makes this day unforgettable, part of my history of this sport. (I’m) just very happy. This trophy means everything to me today. (My) personal satisfaction the way that I resisted all these tough moments is very high.
“At the same time Daniil created this moment, too. The way that he [fought], the way that he played, [was] a champion way. Just well done for him.”
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And because people that think like you are large in numbers that equates to a misallocation of power in the world live in.
I doubt Nadal would teach me anything other than he can play tennis better than me. Always keep things in perspective.
Jim, you’re the only one here who think that Nadal is bigger than what he is, not us here! We have never think that Rafa is bigger than anyone when he’s just a tennis player.
He’s not going to change the world, not going to influence politics, etc and etc. He’s just a professional tennis player, and that’s what we care for.
“JC”, for the most part you are totally off with your recent comments. Why do you even bother to come here if you feel that you are so much more knowledgeable than us?
Most of us here are just a bunch of people who love to watch tennis. And just like soccer fans become emotionally attached to “their” soccer club, most of us have become attached to a specific player. Apparently you like to bet. Nothing wrong with that. Becoming attached to a player is a sort of betting, too. We are very happy when our favorite wins, and we are sad when he/she loses. It’s an emotional gamble, and the currency isn’t money.
Some of us also find certain character traits of our favorite player inspiring. Nothing wrong with that either. I admire plenty of other very diverse people, and most of them have done something far more important than hitting a small fuzzy ball over a net. But there’s still a big gap between admiration and idolization. Personally I’m not comfortable with idolization. And the cult which developed around a certain tennis player whom we all know, was one reason why I was turned off and stopped rooting for him, although it’s of course not at all the player’s fault that some fans started to turn him into a religious experience. But I’m also not at all comfortable with uncritical admiration of my own favorite player. That’s why I never go to certain fan sites. I feel comfortable to read and comment here because it’s less over-the-top and it’s nice to engage now and then in civil discussions with fans of other players.
That said, if someone really idolizes a sports hero – why not? Who am I to criticize it? For the most part it’s pretty harmless. It’s much better than supporting a certain guy with orange skin and an abysmally bad hair cut.
Rafa could teach you to respect other people but I doubt that’s something you care to learn. You’re way too much in love with yourself.
Waves to Elizabeth, and thanks for your sweet reply , and good to read you too dear friend XX 🙂
Alison, really do appreciate reading you. Nice to have someone I’ve known for so long around! Thanks for putting up with me all these years!
Of course, I am hoping Novak is ready to fight for AO 2020 but it’s too soon to know if he’ll be close to healthy. I read he’s coming back for Tokyo and Shanghai. Seems a bit much. Anyway, lots can change between now and AO 2020. Very excited about prospects for WTA 2020. Happy Autumnal Solstice! I’m just happy the worst of the summer heat is gone and looking forward to shorter, colder days 😀
Lol Elizabeth, i thank anybody on these forums that puts up with me to be quite honest, im a bit of a headcase that doesnt always think before she posts, and often regrets what i say afterwards lol, say la vie, anyway Happy Autumn Equinox to you too my lovely, hope all the players are all healthy come to new tennis season,and it seems the next gen are starting to break through, on the ATP and the WTA exciting times, shame the real world is in such dire straits urgh ….
Rafa still says he feels the pain in his body even after 8 days..is his physio not recovering him ?
Any update on Rafa n his health
Withdraw from laver cup Rafa
Rafa’s in Geneva, training for Laver Cup along with Theim. I think you were reading an article based on an old interview.
I think it’s a positive sign that Rafa went to Geneva for LC. I don’t think he would participate if there were serious physical problems.
While I’m pretty indifferent towards LC – I think the format is confusing, and it’s just a star studded exhibition – it seems to be fun for players and audience alike. I wonder how LC will fare in the future. Right now there’s no chance whatsoever that the World Team will win the cup anytime soon. And this might eventually doom the format as it is now.
I’m not so sure. No one on Team Europe is exactly “hot” right now. Rafa’s still recovering from his USO final and indoor hard is his worst surface by far. Roger had a back problem when he lost at the USO. Thiem’s been struggling with a viral infection, just lost a DC match and indoor hard court is definitely not his best surface. Tsitsi and Zverev have been struggling – and that’s putting it nicely. Hard court isn’t Foggy’s forte either.
Jack Sock is going to score a lot of doubles points for Team World.
Not that any of it matters. Laver Cup isn’t really about who wins. It’s about seeing the “superstars” out there having fun playing/watching tennis.
I agree that LC is mostly about seeing the superstars and a few up-and-coming players. But that maybe more interesting for the live spectators than the tv audience. I can of course only speak for myself. I’m certainlynot planning to watch any LC matches on TV, but I would maybe buy a ticket if I would be in the vicinity.
But I think that in the long run LC can only succeed if there’s some competitive value attached to the matches.
All the big servers are in the world team so I really can’t say. It’s not a level playing field.
LC matches is now included in the head to head.
Rafa was playing well at Beijing and Shanghai after the LC in 2017. I do feel Rafa enjoys playing in a team, that brings out the joy and the best from him, and so in 2017 that might have made him played well at Beijing/Shanghai afterwards.
I think after LC, if Rafa decides to play at Shanghai (assuming he’s not that tired physically), he should be doing well there. I actually think Rafa is playing better now than during 2017, except that his first serve % is a bit too low, if he can improve that, he’ll be hard to beat.
I’m also not overly concerned about Rafa playing LC. As I said above, it’s probably a good sign that he showed up in Geneva, since he wouldn’t be there if he weren’t healthy. And while I personally don’t care about the event, it seems to be a fun experience for players and spectators. So, why not? Tennis players don’t have many possibilities to get together in a relaxed atmosphere and enjoy the company of other players in a team event. And it could actually be a good learning experience for the younger players like Tsitsipas.