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Daniil Medvedev fought to beat US Open champion Dominic Thiem and win the biggest title of his career at the ATP Finals in London.
The Russian dug deep to claim a 4-6 7-6 (7-2) 6-4 victory over world number three Thiem at the O2 Arena.
Thiem led the second set tie-break, but Medvedev scored seven points in a row to force a decider and hit a tight final set to secure the victory.
The 24-year-old will finish the year fourth in the world rankings.
Medvedev is the only player to beat the top three ranked players in the season-ending event, following his previous victories over Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal.
He didn’t beat a single player in the top 10 between November 2019 and October 2020, but he has now beaten seven in the space of four weeks.
It was the last year the tournament was held in London, and the event moved to Turin, Italy, starting in 2021.
With no crowd in the stadium due to coronavirus restrictions, Medvedev’s celebrations were hushed up before he and Thiem had a long hug online.
Despite the loss, Thiem can still reflect on a solid year in which he has reached two Slam finals, losing to Djokovic at the Australian Open before claiming his first major title in New York.
Medvedev machine kicks in
Medvedev, who went undefeated in the group stage, is considered one of the fastest problem solvers on the men’s circuit.
A lanky player who has been jokingly dubbed “the machine” by his competitors is able to change the direction of rallies with ease and his own forehand, although flatter than Thiem’s, is just as effective.
His repeated moves to the net as the match progressed allowed him to rush through his service games and surprise Thiem with a change of pace.
However, the Russian missed the first set. Having been in control in the early stages and running 40-0 on his own serve, Medvedev lost four points through a series of forehand errors before committing a double fault to give Thiem a crucial break.
His recovery in the second set tie-break changed the tone of the match and Medvedev fought his way through a difficult fifth game in the third set, converting his ninth break point to take the crucial lead.
He was the stronger of the two players as the match progressed, causing more errors on Thiem’s backhand, and he claimed victory when Thiem sent a return of service to the net.
Thiem is lost again
While there will be an obvious disappointment for Thiem as he lost in the final for the second year in a row, the 27-year-old has improved his game in all respects in another solid year.
Once regarded as solely a clay court player, the biggest title of Thiem’s career came on a hard court, and he too beat Djokovic and Nadal in London to advance to the final.
Thiem thrives on his great groundstrokes and increased confidence in his serve. With Medvedev having the best of the longest rallies, Thiem kept the points short, using his cut to prevent Medvedev from unleashing his own heavy blows.
He avoided two break points in his opening service game, finding an inside-out right hand and an ace at key moments in a 10-minute game.
When Medvedev’s level dropped in the next game, all Thiem had to do was get the ball back into play, capitalizing on his opponent’s mistakes before rushing through a neat service game of his own.
He took the first set in lucky flair, a net winner almost hitting Medvedev, but both players smiled and laughed at the change before restarting for the second.
Thiem had a chance to take the second set, racking up two break points in the seventh game thanks to his deep shots. However, Medvedev was able to find his first serve when he needed it most, and that missed opportunity led to the tie-break with which the Russian escaped.
Thiem scored five straight points to overcome a 0-40 deficit early in the third set, but the Austrian was more frustrated when Medvedev outwitted him.
ATP Finals say goodbye to London
Tournament organizers estimate that around 2.8 million people have attended matches at the O2 Arena since London first hosted the competition in 2009.
The first edition was also won by a Russian and Medvedev thanked 2009 winner Nikolay Davydenko for “being an inspiration to kids like me.”
World number one Djokovic has won the most titles in London. He won the competition for four consecutive years from 2012 to 2015, beating Roger Federer twice, Nadal once and once via walkover in 2014.
Djokovic also played for London 11 times and reached the final six times.
However, Britain’s Andy Murray ended Djokovic’s streak in 2016, in a victory that confirmed his status as world number one at the end of the year.
Given the performances that have been shown in the past, it was a shame there was no crowd to fondly bid farewell to the London race of the ATP Finals.
Analysis
BBC tennis correspondent Russell Fuller
Daniil Medvedev flies a little further under the radar than Dominic Thiem, Stefanos Tsitsipas and Alex Zverev – the other players making life increasingly difficult for Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal.
But Medvedev is pretty much the complete package these days. It has a service that does more than justice to its six foot six inch frame; you can bounce back from baseline to your heart’s content; it moves magnificently; and he feels more and more comfortable moving forward.
And the rest of the fog doesn’t descend as often as it used to.
The Russian has become the first person in the 50-year history of the ATP Finals to beat the top three seeds in the same week.
He has also won three of the last six Masters events.
The next logical step is a Grand Slam title.
