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For Daniil Medvedev, the ATP Finals title in London was the greatest success of his career. Anyone expecting a burst of joy from the Russian after 4: 6, 7: 6 and 6: 4 in the final against Dominic Thiem was disappointed. A little pull down the corners of his mouth, almost as if to say, “That wasn’t really wild.” – Otherwise, there was hardly any movement in the 24-year-old. He seemed withdrawn, which was no accident. “I just don’t celebrate my wins anymore, I decided for myself after the US Open 2019, when I had problems with the fans,” he said.
Flashback: A year ago in New York, Medvedev had fought with the audience multiple times, advancing on the Flushing Meadows object of hatred with provocative gestures, including a middle finger at fans and provocative interviews. But this was not an outlier, it simply reflected the hotspur that Medvedev was. Two years earlier, when he was out of the second round at Wimbledon, he had thrown coins in front of the head referee’s chair to accuse her of bribery. Sometimes he seemed to himself as his greatest enemy. It was Thiem himself who had already given him directional advice at a youth tournament in 2011. Lower Austria had swept Medvedev off the field when they first met. After the game, Lichtenwörther is said to have told him: “You have a good future ahead of you, but you have to calm down.” Advice that would help Medvedev beat Thiem in London nine years later.
Praise to Thiem
Medvedev found words of praise for the opponent defeated in the final on Sunday: “If Dominic plays like he does today, he is one of the best players ever, maybe not in terms of titles or Grand Slams, but when he plays like that. That I defeated him in this way was probably the best victory of my life. “
In addition to world number three Thiem, Medvedev had previously defeated number two and one with Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic. Only David Nalbandian (2007) and Boris Becker (1994) had managed to defeat the top three in a tournament.
