‘Playing Daniil Medvedev is always fun,’ Hubert Hurkacz elated after yet another dream run at the Miami Open

‘Playing Daniil Medvedev is always fun,’ Hubert Hurkacz elated after yet another dream run at the Miami Open

Hubert Hurkacz, Daniil Medvedev

It was an intense quarterfinal clash between reigning champion Hubert Hurkacz and Daniil Medvedev in the 2022 Miami Open. The Russian came to this game with the intention of progressing to the last four and also keeping an eye on the World No. 1 ranking. But Hurkacz left him high and dry as the Pole produced a sensational performance to beat Medvedev 7-6(7), 6-3 in a match that went on for two hours and two minutes.

Hurkacz has been flawless in Miami as he progresses through to the finals and will be clashing swords with the in-form and exciting Carlos Alcaraz who again found a way past Serbia’s Miomir Kecmanovic. The Spaniard went a set down only to get the better of the Serb. So it promises to be a very exciting semifinal clash between two young players.

Coming back to the quarterfinals, the match started well for Hurkacz as he won the opening three games and defended three breakpoints in the seventh. Medvedev looked under the weather with the heat and humidity early on in the game. He struggled to manage that and also failed to convert chances when they came his way. He also came up with so many unforced errors. The Russian had four double faults in the first set as Hurkacz battled it out in the tiebreaker to go ahead in the match.

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After the first set, Daniil Medvedev asked for physio assistance as he shared how his breath is not recovering quickly and he is feeling dizzy under the Miami sun. “All the match I was not feeling my best,” Medvedev told reporters. “After the tough points, I felt that my breath was not recovering fast enough.”

‘I was returning better’: Hubert Hurkacz after reaching the Miami Open semifinals

Hubert Hurkacz
Hubert Hurkacz

The second set was more straightforward as the Pole dominated Medvedev who never looked comfortable playing under the heat. He tried a few tricks but it was not enough to dethrone the reigning Miami Open champion.

“Playing Daniil (Medvedev) is always fun but he is super competitive. He is such a great player, a great competitor so it is really tough to play against him. Definitely, I was hitting my forehands better and was also returning better so that was big for me,” Hurkacz said after the match.

When asked whether he and his coach Craig Boynton did any homework and analysis, the 25-year-old shared how the longer rallies help him to adapt to his opponents’ gameplan and also credited his coach for coming up with secret tactics.

“With Daniil (Medvedev) for sure, you have to play longer rallies so you get time to figure things out. So i was also trying to figure things out on the court and also CB (Craig Boynton) prepared some good plans so thanks to him,” he signed off.

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