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NEW YORK – Daniil Medvedev was one point away from being tied at one set apiece in his US Open semi-final against Felix Auger-Aliassime.
No.2 seed Medvedev got out of this predicament, beat an error-prone Auger-Aliassime 6-4, 7-5, 6-2 on Friday and is now heading to his third Grand Slam final.
“A strange game, a bit, in the second set, where I think everyone felt like it was going to be a set, and you never know where the game is going to go,” said Medvedev, who shot from the rear 5. -2 in the second. “Managed to save the setpoints. He missed a end; I made a good point. And the game turned out completely.”
All in all, this match was an opening act in front of the headliner: No.1 Novak Djokovic against No.4 Alexander Zverev in the second semi-final on Friday night.
It, Medvedev told the crowd, was “a great game, so I advise everyone to see it.” He planned to watch it himself after delivering dinner.
Djokovic started the day 26-0 at major tournaments in 2021, with titles at the Australian Open, French Open and Wimbledon, and his goal of becoming the first man since Rod Laver in 1969 to complete a one-calendar year Grand Slam. Laver was seated in the President’s stand at Arthur Ashe Stadium for Friday’s games.
Medvedev, a 25-year-old Russian, was the finalist for Djokovic at Melbourne Park in February and Rafael Nadal at Flushing Meadows in 2019. It was Medvedev’s third consecutive trip to the US Open semifinals.
“I don’t think I played my best today,” said Medvedev, who has lost just one set so far in six games in the past two weeks, “but I’m really happy to be in the final. “
12th seed Auger-Aliassime is a 21-year-old Canadian who is coached by Nadal’s uncle Toni. He was taking part in a major semi-final for the first time.
Maybe the novelty of it all affected him. Surely, Medvedev’s play did too.
Auger-Aliassime finished with 39 unforced errors – including 10 double faults, three in the opening game alone – and only 17 winners.
Compare that to Medvedev’s numbers, compiled via background pitch coverage and slick shots: 37 winners, 25 unforced errors.
Auger-Aliassime finally got a break point in over an hour, and a double fault from Medvedev gave it a 4-2 lead, which quickly became 5-2. But when Auger-Aliassime served for that set at 5-3, he couldn’t cross the line even after increasing 30-amour and 40-30.
“The only thing I was thinking of, ‘Don’t make an ace on the line, please, and I’ll get you to play,’ Medvedev said afterwards.
Twice he was close to taking the set. Twice that didn’t happen, most disconcerting when he missed what should have been a routine forehand volley, slapping him into the net.
A bad setback eventually gave this game, and then more mistakes – a double fault among them – contributed to Auger-Aliassime breaking for love to hang out 6-5.
Medvedev was then keen to cap a five-game streak and take a two-set lead. The match was an hour and a half old and was essentially over.
Medvedev and Zverev are both on the hunt for a first Grand Slam title. Djokovic, meanwhile, is trying to win a 21st overall title in the sport’s four most important tournaments, which would shatter the mark of men’s career he shares with Nadal and Roger Federer.
Zverev started a 16-game winning streak on Friday, including a victory over Djokovic in the semi-finals of the Tokyo Olympics on July 30 en route to the gold medal. It was a best of three sets match; in New York, the format is the best of five for men.
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