Daniil Medvedev is the third qualifier for the last four of the US Open 2023 men’s singles draw. In a match made very difficult by weather conditions, the world number three managed to defeat Andrey Rublev in three sets and 2:48 in a fight where the control of emotions proved to be essential (6-4, 6-3, 6-4). Shaken by the New York heat like his opponent, the winner of the 2021 edition rose for the fourth time in his career to the semi-finals at Flushing Meadows. As the last step before the final, Medvedev will face the survivor of the highly anticipated duel between Carlos Alcaraz and Alexander Zverev.
An oven, a hell, a pressure cooker. Call it what you will, but on an afternoon when the thermometer read 35 degrees in New York, the Arthur-Ashe court was anything but a place to cool off. Add to that a Grand Slam quarter-final and all the stress that goes with it, and you’ll understand that Medvedev and Rublev had to battle against the elements to provide spectators with a spectacle worthy of the name. At the heart of this 100% Russian duel and between two exchanges to wipe himself with his wet towel, Medvedev mumbled a certain frustration in front of the camera: “one day a player will die and they will see. At the end of the meeting, Rublev is eliminated for the ninth time out of nine attempts at this stage of the Grand Slam competition.
“One of the players is going to die”: why the quarter Medvedev-Rublev fell into the irrational
14 breaks in 29 games
Yes, Rublev must feel touched by a form of curse. Although he has beaten Medvedev twice during his career, the defending champion in Monte Carlo has still not managed to win a single Grand Slam set against his longtime friend. US Open 2020, Australian Open 2021 and therefore US Open 2023: it’s the same story each time for the Rublev offensive against the Medvedev wall. In reality, the worst is elsewhere for Rublev in this quarter-final on the American hard: at each start of the set, the Muscovite managed to break his opponent first. But at the end of each set, Medvedev gradually approached the semi-final.
Leaving like a rocket in the game, Rublev won the first three games and left his opponent only a small point as an appetizer. In diesel mode, Medvedev woke up to equalize at 3-3. From then on, the standoff intensified and the number three seed broke in the ninth game before serving without shaking to win the first set in 32 minutes (6-4). Lacking in confidence, Rublev conceded his face-off early in the second set before moving up a gear to win three more games in a row. But as a good manager, Medvedev let the storm pass to finish the set in a cannonball and take the opposing service four times over the entire set (6-3).
Medvedev: ‘The conditions were brutal, I couldn’t see the ball anymore’
Dulled by the humidity combined with the heat, the two men attacked the third set after a long break. But in reality, the servers continued to suffer the martyrdom to keep their face-off. With the energy of desperation, Rublev tore away to confirm his break and lead 4-2. An effort far from without consequences, since the eighth in the world did not win a game until the end of the match. However, Rublev fought like hell, saving four match points. But on New York concrete, even Lucifer would not have held up in this heat (6-4). And now for the cold shower.