Daniil Medvedev is expecting Serbian tennis great Novak Djokovic to be at his absolute best in the men's singles final of the US open on Sunday. Medvedev defeated defending champion Carlos Alcaraz by 7-6(3) 6-1 3-6 6-3 to progress into the summit clash.
Djokovic, 36, is hunting a fourth U.S. Open title that would see him equal Margaret Court's record haul of 24 Grand Slams and a good measure of revenge on Medvedev.
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"He (Djokovic) is always better than the previous time he plays. For example, I beat him in the U.S. Open final, he beat me in Bercy (Paris Masters) in a great match. Carlos beat him in Wimbledon, he beat him in Cincinnati. Novak is going to be his best version on Sunday, and I have to be the best-ever version of myself if I want to try to beat him," Medvedev told reporters.
"Novak, when he loses, he's never the same after... It's just a different mentality... So, I have to use it knowing that he's going to be 10 times better than he was that day. And I have to be, if I want to still beat him, 10 times better than I was that day."
Medvedev, however, said he would stick to his pre-match routine before facing Djokovic. "I'm going to do all the same. It's just the mental preparation where... you want to fight till the end, you want to win, and that's how you should be in the final of a Grand Slam," he added.
Big confidence boost after beating the Wimbledon champion
Medvedev said the win against Alcaraz was a confidence boost but acknowledged that he would be "hell-disappointed" if he were to lose the final despite a successful run at New York. Medvedev had won the US Open in 2021 and he explained that the confidence that he is capable of replicating that feat again in the big stage gives him great confidence.
"You know you can do it again. You want to do it again. You want to feel this. And at the same time, what is most important is to kind of use it but forget about it and go for the next one."
(With inputs by Reuters)
