Daniil Medvedev’s STUBBORNNESS cost him the US Open final against mental giant Novak Djokovic claims Mats Wilander

Wilander feels that Medvedev's inflexibility with his tactics cost him the match

Daniil Medvedev’s STUBBORNNESS cost him the US Open final against mental giant Novak Djokovic claims Mats Wilander

Daniil Medvedev and Novak Djokovic at the US Open 2023 title ceremony (Credits : Getty images)

2nd seed Novak Djokovic scripted history on Sunday as he won a record-extending 24th Grand Slam by claiming the US Open 2023 title at the Arthur Ashe Stadium. The Serbian legend defeated the 2021 US Open champion Daniil Medvedev in straight sets(6-3, 7-6 (5), 6-3) in just over 3 hours to clinch his 4th US Open title and 3rd Grand Slam of the year. Djokovic avenged his loss to Medvedev in the 2021 US Open final as he became the oldest man (36) to win the US Open in the Open Era.

The match was probably won in an epic 2nd set that lasted over 1hr 40 mins. Medvedev missed a crucial set point at 6-5 up. Talking about the point in the post-match press conference, the 3rd seed said, “Of course, there are regrets about the 2nd set. I should have won it. That passing for sure down the line, not cross. But tennis sometimes is not that easy.” The 3rd set was a regulation one for Djokovic as he broke the Russian twice.

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Former world no.1 player Mats Wilander lashed out at the Russian for not being flexible with his game plan against the Serbian legend. In his column for the French publication L’Equipe, the 7-time Grand Slam champion wrote, ” Daniil was stubborn. The exact opposite of Djokovic, who won a lot in this final thanks to his brain. He saw perfectly well that Medvedev was not moving forward in return. He was able to draw the necessary conclusion.”

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Medvedev stood way behind the baseline while returning Djokovic’s serve. The Serb did well to spot the Russian’s positioning on return and decided to serve out wide and followed it up with a volley. While Medvedev stood back to Alcaraz’s serve too, Novak did a better job of mixing up his net play and groundstrokes.

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Daniil Medvedev full of praise for Novak Djokovic after the US Open final

djokovic medvedev us open 2021
Novak Djokovic and Daniil Medvedev after US Open 2021 final (Credits: US OPEN)

“I find it amazing that I beat Novak in a Grand Slam Final. At this point, I’d say that’s the pinnacle of my career.. at the same time if he & Rafa didn’t exist.. well that’s not possible. I played 5 finals against them & only won 1.. he pushes me to be better.. we met when I was 500 in the world. He was super kind to me, he treated me as a normal person. He still does. Nothing changed. 24 Grand Slams, nothing changed. I think that’s something great about a person,” Medvedev said about his friend Djokovic in the trophy ceremony.

The world no.3 also mentioned that while he has won 20 titles, Djokovic has won 24 Grand Slams reflecting his greatness. With the win, Djokovic improved his head-to-head against Medvedev to 10-5.

Now, the ATP Tour will return to China for the first time in four years. Medvedev won the last edition of the Shanghai Masters four years ago, beating Alexander Zverev in the final.

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