Tennis-U.S. Open champ Medvedev cruises into Indian Wells third round

October 10, 2021

(Reuters) – U.S. Open champion Daniil Medvedev showed no signs of a Grand Slam hangover with a business-like 6-4 6-2 win over Mackenzie McDonald to advance into the third round at Indian Wells on Saturday.

All aspects of the top-seeded Russian’s game were clicking as he improved to 5-0 in head-to-head matches against the American.

The 25-year-old was sharp from the outset, breaking McDonald to open the match on a warm night in the Southern California desert.

Medvedev’s ability to cover the court despite his towering frame, an aspect of his game that was on full display when he won a 44-shot rally, proved too much for the challenger, who never really pushed the tournament favorite.

Medvedev unleashed a blistering serve to McDonald’s backhand on match point and the return sailed wide to end the affair.

The Russian ended world number one Novak Djokovic’s shot at history last month by stopping his bid for a calendar year Grand Slam at Flushing Meadows.

Djokovic withdrew prior to the start of the tournament in Indian Wells, which was not held last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving Medvedev as its number one seed.

In his last outing, Medvedev beat Denis Shapovalov in straight sets at the Laver Cup.

Next up for Medvedev is either Marcos Giron or Filip Krajinovic, who are playing their second-round match later on Saturday at the Masters 1000 tournament.

(Reporting by Rory Carroll in Los Angeles; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman)

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