Australian Open 2022 Results: Friday Bracket Winners, Scores and Top Stats
January 28, 2022
For the second time in as many years, Greece's Stefanos Tsitsipas battled Russia's Daniil Medvedev in the semifinals of the Australian Open.
For the second time in as many years, Medvedev bested his rival, extending his record against Tsitsipas to 7-2.
The match was not without controversy, including another coaching violation for Tsitsipas, but the Russian shook off an incredibly even start and midmatch rant to beat his opponent decisively and earn another trip to the finals.
The world No. 2 earned the victory in four, setting up a championship showdown with Rafa Nadal in which he should be the favorite.
Men's Scores
No. 2 Daniil Medvedev def. No. 4 Stefanos Tsitsipas, 7-6(5), 4-6, 6-4, 6-1
Medvedev came back early in the match, erasing a 4-1 deficit in a tiebreak to win the first set.
He has never lost in the Australian Open after winning the first set, a record that now sits at 18-0.
After dropping the second set and earning a violation for a "visible obscenity," the Russian launched an accusatory rant at the umpire, claiming his opponent's father was consistently coaching.
Speaking in his post-match, on-court interview, he said that letting the anger over the situation get to him is not something that fuels his play.
"To be honest I don't think bad emotions help me too much. Many times I lose the match because of this. You lose concentration. You lose too much energy. As soon as I've done it, I thought, 'That was a big mistake.'"
After a dicey start to the third set, Medvedev recomposed himself and won 6-4 when Tsitsipas went wide right on the set point. It was the last truly competitive moment of the match.
The fourth set brought about a coaching violation for Tsitsipas, vindicating his opponent. The violation was set up when Greek-speaking official Eva Asderaki-Moore, located in the tunnel just underneath Tstitsipas' box, signaled the umpire upon detecting the coaching in a fairly clever and elaborate sting operation.
From there, it was all Medvedev. The 2021 U.S. Open winner picked his opponent apart, cashing his ticket to his second consecutive Australian Open final.
The opponent for that match?
Spain's Rafa Nadal, who defeated Italy's Matteo Berrettini, 6-3, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3, to advance.
For Nadal, the match with Medvedev is the culmination of a seemingly improbable run. At 35 years of age, coming off a devastating injury that sidelined him for six months and a bout of COVID-19 this past December, there was every reason to believe he would not make it as far as he has.
Now, he has an opportunity to break a three-way tie with Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic and become the first man to win 21 Grand Slams.
The emotion painting his face following his victory over Berrettini told the story of a legendary figure recognizing the arduous journey he has gone on to make it back to this moment and the realization that moments of this enormity are not to be taken for granted.
Beating Medvedev will not be easy, though.
The Russian is attempting to make history in his own right, becoming the first player to follow up his first Grand Slam victory immediately with his second, per tennis journalist Ben Rothenberg. He looks at it as a message to the tennis world, too, suggesting the top stars of the previous generation will be watching Sunday.
"What is funny is that I'm going against someone going for the 21st slam. I guess last time Rafa was watching near the TV and I think Novak will be watching this one also," he said on-court.
Nadal holds a 3-1 advantage over Medvedev in their previous matchups. Their biggest showdown to date was the 2019 U.S. Open final, won by Nadal in five sets.
Medvedev is a different player now than he was then, though. He's smarter, more tactical and capable of beating the best players in the world on the biggest stages. A win Sunday would put an exclamation point on his latest run and set him up to be the world's No. 1 sooner rather than later.