By Richard Pagliaro | Friday, April 19, 2019
Daniil Medvedev broke five times stunning world No. 1 Novak Djokovic, 6-3, 4-6, 6-2, to reach his first Monte-Carlo semifinal where he will face Dusan Lajovic.
Photo credit: Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters
Staring at his strings, Novak Djokovic looked like a man scanning his racquet face for solutions to the problems that plagued him.
The world No. 1 kept trying to problem-solve, but Daniil Medvedev had all the answers.
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Medvedev broke serve five times and beat Djokovic at his own baseline game shocking the top-seeded Serbian, 6-3, 4-6, 6-2, to storm into his first Masters semifinal at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters.
Playing on his least favorite surface, Medvedev scored his biggest career win, raising his record to an ATP-best 21-6 on the season.
"Definitely the best match of my career," Medvedev said afterward. "Not in terms of level of play, but of result...to beat the world No. 1 for the first time."
The Sofia champion will play another Serbian, Dusan Lajovic, for a spot in Sunday's final.
The 48th-ranked Lajovic ended the inspired run of Italian qualifier Lorenzo Sonego, 6-4, 7-5, in one hour, 47 minutes to reach his first Masters semifinal.
Monte-Carlo is Djokovic’s home tournament, but he looked listless at times and lacked the precision he typically shows scattering 47 unforced errors in dropping to 5-3 since dismissing Rafael Nadal to win the Australian Open in January.
The slow start heightened the degree of difficulty: Djokovic knew exactly what he was in for in this match.
The 15-time Grand Slam champion subdued Medvedev 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-2, 6-3, in the Australian Open round of 16 in January and dropped serve immediately to open today’s rematch.
"(The Australian Open) helped me a lot because I saw even if Novak is in his prime, and I think he was in Australia, I made him run a lot for the win," Medvedev told Tennis Channel's Prakash Amritraj afterward. "I knew I had to keep up this level and he didn’t play as well as he did in Australia and that’s why I came out on top today."
Djokovic, who will try to complete his second Nole Slam by winning Roland Garros and holding all four Grand Slam crowns simultaneously, said Paris is his primary focus on clay.
"For sure, the French Open is the ultimate goal on clay," Djokovic said afterward. "It's expected, in a way, for me to peak there because that's what I'm aiming for. It's a long season and this is only the first tournament on clay. Let's see how it goes."
The 10th-seeded Russian arrived in the Principality with career records of 1-11 vs. Top 10 opponents and 2-12 on clay.
None of that mattered much to the Sofia champion, who frequently took the ball earlier than Djokovic, delved into the corners of the court in the final set and read the two-time champion’s increasing drop shots. Medvedev is 4-0 on clay this week and 2-0 vs. Top 10 opponents following his 6-2, 1-6, 6-4 win over Stefanos Tsitsipas yesterday toppling the top seed today.
The ATP leader in match wins this year wasted no time making an immediate impression on a breezy afternoon. Medvedev broke at 15 in the opening game as Djokovic struggled to find his range.
Rather than stepping up and driving the ball, Djokovic was drifting a bit backhand the baseline and trying to aim shots in the corners.
While Medvedev’s stroke production may look a little unorthodox, he makes solid, clean contact, moved with confidence and was taking the ball earlier throughout the opening set.
The 23-year-old Russian raced out to a 3-1 lead and threatened a second break before Djokovic dug out of a 0-40 hole to hold in the fifth game.
Lacking the energy and urgency he exhibited in their Australian Open duel, Djokovic tried slicing the ball low at the big man’s feet, but over-played the drop shot a bit in the first set. When Djokovic netted a backhand, Medvedev had double set point.
The Russian broke again to seize the opening set on Djokovic’s 18th error. The top-seeded Serbian managed just two winners in a sloppy opening set.
Sixty-one minutes into the match, Djokovic maneuvered his way to double break point. Medvedev found the line with a forehand to save the first and Djokovic missed a forehand down the line on the second.
After several botched drop-shot attempts, Djokovic pulled off an exquisite backhand drop shot winner then left the frustrated Russian kicking the green wooden Fed Ex box near the net post drawing admonishment from the chair umpire.
Seeing the first signs of frustration in his 23-year-old opponent, Djokovic ratcheted up the torment carving out a short drop shot to set up a rainbow lob for his first break for 2-1.
A stressed Medvedev continued to sarcastically berate chair Gianluca Mascarella with a derisive “Bravo! Bravo!” on the ensuing changeover.
Moving up closer to the baseline, Djokovic was striking the ball with more conviction—and using the drop shot more effectively to dislodge Medvedev from the baseline in the second set.
The top-seeded Serbian fired a pair of aces closing the second set to force a decider.
A packed crowd, including Sebastián Nadal, Rafa Nadal’s father, and former Australian Open champion Thomas Johansson, watched the match escalate into a final set.
Djokovic continued exploring the front court with the dropper capping a draining 41-shot rally with a drop shot to set up a high volley. That exchange sapped some strength from the legs as Djokovic followed with a double fault, netted dropper and stray forehand donating the break and a 3-1 lead.
Giving the two-time champion a taste of his own medicine, Medvedev hit a drop shot winner as he breezed through a love hold backing up the break in the fifth game.
On his least favorite surface, Medvedev continued to pose major headaches. The long, lanky Russian gave Djokovic little open court space and his two-handed backhand was a big weapon.
Running down a drop shot, Medvedev coaxed a long lob scoring his fifth break for 5-1.
Holding a 30-love lead in the eighth game, Djokovic lost three points in a row for to face match point.
Combining patience and power, Medvedev stepped in and rocketed a diagonal backhand winner to close an impressive two hour, 20-minute victory in style.