Daniil Medvedev hadn바카라t won a single match in his three previous appearances at the Italian Open. (More Tennis News)
Now he바카라s won the tournament.
The Russian beat rising 20-year-old Danish player Holger Rune 7-5, 7-5 on Sunday for the first clay-court trophy of a career that includes the 2021 U.S. Open title and a period at No. 1 in the rankings.
Medvedev was previously known almost exclusively for his prowess on hard courts, with 18 of his previous 19 titles coming on that surface 바카라 the other was on grass in Mallorca. But he now must be considered a contender at the French Open 바카라 the clay-court Grand Slam 바카라 which starts next Sunday.
There바카라s room for a new champion at Roland Garros after 14-time winner Rafael Nadal announced on Thursday that he won바카라t be competing in the tournament because of a lingering hip injury that has sidelined him since January.
바카라Honestly, I didn바카라t believe much I can win a Masters 1000 on clay in my career because usually, I hated it. I hated playing on it. I don바카라t feel good on it, like nothing was working,바카라 Medvedev said.
바카라(But) before this tournament already in Madrid and Monte Carlo, I was kind of feeling not too bad. I didn바카라t have any big tantrums,바카라 Medvedev added. 바카라I came here and I felt amazing on practice. ... I was like, 바카라I don바카라t know what바카라s happening, but I feel amazing. Let바카라s see how it goes.바카라 But then you need to play the toughest opponents in the world to try to make it. And I바카라m really happy that I managed to do it and prove myself and everybody that I바카라m capable of doing it.바카라
Medvedev also felt great after beating Stefanos Tsitsipas in straight sets in the semifinals, after which he celebrated with a little dance.
Rune, who eliminated six-time Rome champion Novak Djokovic in the quarterfinals, should also leave the Foro Italico confident for Paris. He was also the runner-up to Andrey Rublev at the Monte Carlo Masters last month and then won a clay title in Munich.
바카라Maybe put too many expectations on myself, even though I told myself not to,바카라 Rune said. 바카라I served probably worse today than I did the recent matches. That바카라s also a big factor because Medvedev, he likes to grind. If he gets a chance to grind, it바카라s going to be long rallies, as you saw some of the points were.바카라
The final started nearly two hours late due to a rain delay 바카라 a day after the Medvedev-Tsitsipas match was interrupted by rain suspensions for a total of nearly 4 Âœ hours.
Earlier Sunday, organizers announced that they plan to install a retractable roof over Campo Centrale by 2026.
When the new rankings are released on Monday, Medvedev will rise to No. 2 and Carlos Alcaraz will return to No. 1, while Djokovic will drop from No. 1 to No. 3. Alcaraz, Medvedev and Djokovic, therefore, will be seeded first, second and third, respectively, at the French Open.
When Medvedev broke Rune바카라s serve to win the first set, he did it by producing a blistering backhand return cross-court winner from deep in the corner and then ran down a drop shot with ease to set up a comfortable forehand winner.
Rune hung his hands on his knees when Medvedev won a draining 21-shot rally midway through the second.
Medvedev missed two swinging forehand volleys to hand Rune a break and a 4-3 lead in the second, but Rune couldn바카라t serve it out and Medvedev evened the set at 5-5 and then broke again in the final game.
When Rune바카라s forehand was overruled by the chair umpire and called out on Medvedev바카라s second championship point, Medvedev dropped down to the clay on his knees to celebrate.
바카라I have to say thanks to Carlos (Bernades, the chair umpire),바카라 Medvedev said. 바카라Because I actually felt the last ball was in. And it was out by far. 바카라Š Thanks a lot. Otherwise, I would continue the point.바카라
Medvedev dropped only one set 바카라 to Bernabe Zapata Miralles in the third round 바카라 over his six matches.
바카라I mean, who would have thought that I would be standing here? I honestly didn바카라t,바카라 Medvedev said toward his box during the trophy presentation. 바카라I don바카라t know about you guys, but I honestly didn바카라t think so. But it happened.바카라
