"I'm gonna be the happiest man on the planet" - Daniil Medvedev hopes to get 'third time lucky' after reaching 2024 Australian Open final
Daniil Medvedev has said that winning the 2024 Australian Open title will make him the happiest man on the planet.
Medvedev reached the final in Melbourne twice before and finished as the runner-up both times. In 2021, he was beaten by two-time defending champion Novak Djokovic. A year later, Rafael Nadal came from the brink of defeat to beat the Russian and take home the title.
On Friday, January 26, Medvedev showed grit and resilience to come from two sets down to beat Alexander Zverev in the semifinals. He won 5-7, 3-6, 7-6(4), 7-6(5), 6-3 at the Rod Laver Arena to give himself another shot at winning the title Down Under.
In his on-court interview after the game, Medvedev said that he was hoping to get "third time lucky" in Melbourne.
"Well, first of all, we say third time lucky, so let's see. I can say by experience, it's not always like this, but hopefully here it works," he said.
The World No. 3 also said that winning the Norman Brookes Challenge Cup would mean a lot to him as he has not always been at his best in Melbourne over the years.
"It will mean a lot. Because I would say this court is not my best court in terms of my performance and my actual self-esteem, I would say on the court and that's why many times I had to dig deep during this tournament. So I'm gonna be the happiest man on the planet," he added.
Next up for Daniil Medvedev is a clash with Jannik Sinner, who beat record-10-time champion Novak Djokovic in four sets in the other semifinal. The 27-year-old praised the Italian for his performances at the Australian Open and hoped to recover in time for the final.
"Yeah, [Jannik Siiner has been] impressive. As you say, 5-1 against Andrey Rublev, I was sleeping at the time, at 5-1 on the tie-break against Andrey. Won the tie break. 6-1, 6-3 against Novak who was 10-0 in the semifinals on this court. Very impressive and I need to recover well, try to be 100% on Sunday. I hope you guys can enjoy and we can have a great show," he opined.
"If I lose, I lose" - Daniil Medvedev on his mentality during SF win against Alexander Zverev
For only the fourth time in his career, Daniil Medvedev rallied from two sets down to win a match. And in his first Grand Slam clash with Alexander Zverev, and 19th overall, he had to dig deep to turn the contest around.
With Medvedev struggling to find his form, Zverev won the first two sets and looked on course to win the match in straight sets. The Russian, however, slowly found his footing, hitting 22 more winners in the final three sets compared to the first two to clinch victory.
Speaking about his win against Zverev, Medvedev said that he found motivation by telling himself that he should be proud of his efforts even if he lost the match.
"First set, honestly saying, I think we both played not very good. Second set, I felt like I played actually a bit better than first said but he played very well. So 6-3, two breaks, I don't really have chances on his surf," Daniil Medvedev said.
"I was a little bit lost but during the third side, I started saying myself that if I lose this match, I just wanted to be proud of myself. I want to fight till the end, fight for every point and if I lose, I lose and I managed to win. So I'm very proud," he added.