From New York to Almaty, consecutively defeated by the strongest players in tennis, Medvedev claims the title again after three years

Many people recognize Russian tennis player Daniil Medvedev. In 2021, he dominated Serbian ace Djokovic in the US Open final, earning his first Grand Slam trophy and standing as the only post-1995 player to claim a major title. Yet, since the 2023 Rome Masters, Medvedev has reached six finals but lost them all. His struggles are comparable to those of Canadian player Auger-Aliassime.

Fortunately, last week at the ATP 250 Almaty Open, he finally triumphed. So, who were the players that defeated Medvedev in those six finals? And how did he secure the championship last week? This article will take you through the details.

At the 2023 US Open, seeded third, Medvedev defeated Hungary’s Balazs, Australia’s O’Connell, Argentina’s Baez, Australia’s De Minaur, compatriot Rublev, and Spain’s Alcaraz to reach his fifth Grand Slam final. Unfortunately, in the final, he was swept in straight sets by Serbian star Djokovic, unable to recreate the miracle. Notably, this was Djokovic’s last Grand Slam title.

In September that year, Medvedev entered the China Open as the second seed. In the first round, he overcame American Paul, who had reached a Grand Slam semifinal before. Subsequently, Medvedev defeated Australia’s De Minaur, France’s Humbert, and Germany’s Zverev to reach the final. His opponent was Italy’s Sinner. The match featured two tiebreaks, with Sinner ultimately winning the title. This marked Sinner’s first career victory over Medvedev.

At the end of October, top-seeded Medvedev at the ATP 500 Vienna Open defeated France’s Paire, Bulgaria’s Dimitrov, compatriot Khachanov, and Greece’s Tsitsipas to reach the final. Once again, he faced Italy’s Sinner. The duel extended to the deciding set, but Sinner emerged victorious. Thus, Medvedev had now lost three finals in a row.

In January 2024, as a seeded player, Medvedev won six consecutive matches at the Australian Open, reaching the final for the third time in his career. Unfortunately, despite taking the first two sets and holding an advantage, he was overcome by his opponent in three straight sets, losing the final. The winner was again Italy’s Sinner.

Afterward, he lost the 2024 Indian Wells Masters final to the strongest post-2000 player, Spain’s Alcaraz, and the 2025 ATP 500 Halle final to Asia’s top player, Kazakhstan’s Bublik. Objectively speaking, Sinner and Alcaraz form the strongest post-2000 duo, while Djokovic remains as formidable as ever. Calling these three the top players in tennis may not be an exaggeration.

At last week’s Almaty tournament, seeded second, Medvedev had a first-round bye; in the second round, he struggled greatly but managed to defeat Australia’s Walton to advance; in the quarterfinals, he won in straight sets against Hungary’s Molčan to reach the semifinals; despite losing the first set in the semis, he rallied to win two consecutive sets against Australian qualifier Duckworth, reaching the final.

In the final, Medvedev faced the eighth seed, France’s Moutet, who had twice reached the Round of 16 in Grand Slams and was a formidable opponent. After losing the first set, Moutet took the second, pushing the match to a decider. Fortunately, Medvedev clinched the final set 6–3, winning his first tour title in two years. That concludes today’s tennis story; more to come tomorrow.(Source: Tennis Home, Author: Yixin Jushi)