The 2020 season ended with Daniil Medvedev’s win at the ATP Finals, the sixth different winner in the last six editions of the event, emerging victorious at the end of three tightly contested knockout matches. The Russian dominated the last few weeks of the season, winning in Bercy as well, but was his victory in London somewhat predictable?
UbiTennis CEO Ubaldo Scanagatta and Mr Flink met up (remotely) to discuss the tournament and the omens for tennis in 2021. Here’s their chat:
VIDEO SCHEDULE
0:58 – Medvedev swept through the ATP Finals – an expected triumph? “He beat the three best players in the world, that’s hardly predictable…”
3:51 – “The Russian showed his mental strength, coming back to beat both Nadal and Thiem…”
5:27 – “Djokovic had won 24 of the last 26 tie-breaks he had played, and 16 of the last 17 – how did he relinquish that 4-0 lead at 6-6 in the decider?”
7:40 – A few words on the final: “Thiem wasted a few big chances in the second set, missing a fairly easy forehand touch near the net.” Did he employ the right strategy?
11:46 – “The Austrian said that he would make the same choices, and we should remember that he had a tougher semifinal match…”
14:34 – “Medvedev isn’t beautiful to watch, but that doesn’t seem to bother him…”
16:54 – Is this the beginning of a new era? “We said the same thing when Zverev won the Finals in 2018 and when Tsitsipas did it last year…” Will the Australian Open take place in 2021?
20:51 – Djokovic is in the midst of a political struggle – was he distracted during the week he spent in London?
27:24 – What about Sascha Zverev and the accusations that his former girlfriend moved against him – did those play a role in his early exit?
29:14 – The first winner of the Finals was Stan Smith, the current president of the International Tennis Hall of Fame: “You and I have a job with the Hall of Fame now, don’t we?”
32:08 – A final word on Daniil Medvedev – will he win a Major in 2021? “He’s definitely not winning the French Open, and I think that grass isn’t his best surface either, but he definitely has his chances on hardcourts.”
Transcript by Lorenzo Andorlini; translated and edited by Tommaso Villa
