Austria’s Dominic Thiem advanced to his second Grand Slam final of the year as he dug out a win on Friday against third-seeded Russian Daniil Medvedev 6-2, 7-6 (7), 7-6 (5) at the US Open.
“For sure [it was] the toughest straight-sets win I ever had because it could have easily been completely different,” said Thiem, who is to compete for his first-ever Grand Slam title in today’s men’s final against Germany’s Alexander Zverev.
Thiem seized the early momentum inside the Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York City, handily carrying the first set without dropping a single first-serve point, but a double fault and a forehand error saw him hand Medvedev the break and the early lead in the second set.
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Thiem, who has lost in three Grand Slam finals and never claimed a major title, spent the remainder of the set playing catch-up, converting on a critical break to level the score 5-5 before the 24-year-old Russian dragged it into a tiebreak.
Medvedev kept his energy up as he traded blows with his opponent, triumphing in an epic, 33-shot rally early in the tiebreak, but his efforts came up short.
“He just doesn’t miss when I play with his rhythm, so I tried to destroy that a little bit with lot of slices, and also with high balls with a lot of spin. That was what was the plan,” Thiem said.
The 27-year-old Thiem, who had a trainer examine his ankle before the third set, slipped and fell twice in the match, unfurling a string of frustrated exclamations the second time he did so.
However, he regained his cool to survive yet another tiebreak and clinched the affair with a power forehand and a roar.
“I played my best tennis then toward the end of the sets,” said Thiem, who saved six-of-eight break-point opportunities during the match, committing a dozen fewer unforced errors than his opponent.
“Both tiebreaks were amazing. Tiebreaks are mentally a tough thing. I don’t like them at all to be honest,” he said. “I’m really happy to be through.”
Medvedev, who fired off a dozen aces in the match, showed shades of his bad boy persona seen in his run last year to the US Open final, as he offered a sarcasm-drenched apology in the first set after crossing to the other side of the net to lobby for a late challenge, earning a violation in the process.
“I think I killed someone, right?” he said to a tournament supervisor in the stands, adding to the umpire: “My sincere apologies for crossing the net.”
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