Daniil Medvedev joins Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Dominic Thiem at the ATP Finals

The ATP Finals will take place in London between November 15-22, with eight best players of the season fighting for the crown and 1500 points. The coronavirus had kept the season under the ice between March and August, forcing the ATP to change the ranking rules and freeze points from 2019. By mid-September, we had seen only two Majors and one Masters 1000 event, with more tournaments to come in the upcoming weeks, leading towards the premium ATP Finals held in London for the last time before switching to Turin from 2021. Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Dominic Thiem were the first players confirmed for the ATP Finals, joined by the US Open semi-finalist Daniil Medvedev. The Russian will compete in London for the second straight year, making a debut in 2019 and dropping all three encounters against Stefanos Tsitsipas, Rafael Nadal and Alexander Zverev, unable to fight for the place in the semis.

The 24-year-old Moscovian has won 15 matches so far in 2020, still seeking the season's first ATP title. Daniil kicked off the season with four ATP Cup victories, leading Russian into the semi-final where he lost to Novak Djokovic after almost three hours. Using a favorable draw, Daniil reached the fourth round at the Australian Open, leading two sets to one against a former champion Stan Wawrinka but losing in five sets. In Rotterdam, Vasek Pospisil ousted Medvedev in straight sets, followed by another pale performance in Marseille, with a bagel suffered against Gilles Simon in the second round. Like the other players, Daniil had to skip the next five months, returning in Cincinnati where Roberto Bautista Agut ousted him in the quarters despite a perfect start, recharging batteries for the US Open and enjoying another deep run in New York, just like a year ago.

Daniil Medvedev will compete at the ATP Finals for the second straight year.

Daniil toppled four players from outside the top-75 to set the quarter-final clash against the fellow Russian Andrey Rublev, beating him in three tight sets to advance into the last four. Seeking the second straight US Open final, Medvedev suffered a 6-2, 7-6, 7-6 loss to an eventual champion Dominic Thiem after nearly three hours of a great battle. Thiem delivered more efficient numbers behind the second serve, defending six out of eight break points and stealing Medvedev's serve four times, two of those in the opener. Daniil had more winners thanks to the final set, but it wasn't enough to keep him safe, spraying too many errors as he couldn't find the way to penetrate the rival and discover an open court. Trailing 5-3 in both sets, the Austrian kept his composure to erase the deficit and reach tie breaks, claiming them both to send Medvedev packing. Daniil will not play in Rome, entering Hamburg as his only pre-Roland Garros event on clay.

from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/3mkeytH