Medvedev outfoxes De Minaur to open account in Turin

Daniil Medvedev further outlined his credentials as one of the Tour’s sharpest tacticians on Tuesday at the Nitto ATP Finals.

The fourth seed produced an expertly measured performance to prevail 6-2, 6-4 over Alex de Minaur and get up and running at the season finale. Medvedev, the 2020 champion, had all the answers in a chess-like battle to improve to 7-3 in the pair's Lexus ATP Head2Head rivalry. 

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Classic @DaniilMedwed ?#NittoATPFinals pic.twitter.com/tfEhrYRmQ7

Medvedev looked transformed from the erratic player who fell to a straight-sets defeat by Taylor Fritz in his opening-round match. In his clash with De Minaur, he did not face a single break point, according to Infosys ATP Stats, and outhit his opponent 24 winners to 10.

“I went into this match blocking the noise, even from myself,” said Medvedev, who is making his sixth consecutive appearance at the Nitto ATP Finals. “I really didn’t care what was happening on the court, I just tried to play, and it was a good feeling. Sometimes it’s good to block it [the noise], and I did that well today.

“After the last match, I was too tired mentally to fight the way I usually do. [So,] I went into the match [today] just trying to hit some shots, even thinking about next year. What is going to work well today and what’s not. It worked well, so I’m okay with it.”

In a match that thoroughly contrasted his opener with Fritz, Medvedev was ruthless in attack throughout the encounter. The 28-year-old was particularly dialled in during the opening set, during which he effectively limited the Australian’s ability to take the upper hand, winning 20 out of 31 baseline points.

The second set was more evenly contested, but Medvedev came alive in a crucial ninth game to break serve and close in on his first Top 10 win on hard courts since March. 

Read more about the Vogue photo shoot here (Credit: Corinne Dubreuil/ATP Tour)

Medvedev's 78-minute triumph means that Taylor Fritz could qualify for the semi-finals if he overcomes World No. 1 Jannik Sinner in their Tuesday evening clash. Medvedev will seek to bolster his hopes of progressing from the John Newcombe Group when he takes on the Italian on Thursday. 

The loss is a blow to De Minaur’s hopes of progressing out the group on his debut appearance in Turin. The 25-year-old, who will face Fritz in his final round-robin match, is now 0-2 in the John Newcombe Group.

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