Author: Barkha Roy
On Friday night, Daniil Medvedev demonstrated once again that, when he’s at his best, he has the skills to beat any opponent in the world. As the third seed, he eliminated defending champion Carlos Alcaraz 7-6(3), 6-1, 3-6, 6-3 to book his place in the US Open final.
A crucial break in a crucial game goes Medvedev’s way.
He’s up 4-2 in the fourth. pic.twitter.com/G8rn6kUdBv
– US Open Tennis (@usopen) September 9, 2023
Meanwhile, Novak Djokovic moved a step closer to winning his 24th major title on Friday by convincingly defeating American Ben Shelton 6-3, 6-2, 7-6(4). This victory took Djokovic to his record 10th US Open final, equalling Bill Tilden’s historic feat.
Daniil Medvedev wants the noise after that win! 👂 pic.twitter.com/VwVniY9aLr
– US Open Tennis (@usopen) September 9, 2023
Medvedev, 27, has now prepared the ground for a rematch of the 2021 Flushing Meadows final against Novak Djokovic. In that memorable encounter two years ago, Medvedev surprised Djokovic, thwarting the Serb’s quest to win all four major titles in a single season. On Sunday, Medvedev will once again strive to prevent Djokovic from securing his record 24th Grand Slam title.
Meanwhile, Gabriela Dabrowski and Erin Routliffe, who joined forces last month, quickly advanced to one of the biggest stages in tennis: the US Open women’s doubles final. In only their fourth tournament as a pair, Dabrowski and Routliffe, who are ranked 16th, booked their place in the final by beating Hsieh Su-wei and Wang Xinyu, who are ranked 8th, 6-1, 7-6(4) in their semi-final clash at Louis Armstrong Stadium on Friday.
In their next title match, Dabrowski and Routliffe will face the 12th-ranked team of Laura Siegemund and Vera Zvonareva, who have already won the 2020 US Open title. Siegemund and Zvonareva booked their place in the final by beating unseeded pair Jennifer Brady and Brazilian Luisa Stefani 6-4, 6-1 in the second semi-final, also held on Armstrong Court.
Facing Brady and Stefani, Siegemund and Zvonareva initially had a 4-0 lead in the first set, which then diminished to 4-3. However, they regained the momentum and went on to dominate the match, winning eight of the next ten games. Remarkably, Siegemund and Zvonareva managed 29 winners during the match and committed just 13 unforced errors.