Nadal Levels Up With Medvedev In London

Rafael Nadal dug deep to send his match with Daniil Medvedev to a deciding set on Wednesday at the Nitto ATP Finals. The Spaniard fought back to level the score at 6-7(3), 6-3.

Nadal holds a 2-0 lead in his FedEx ATP Head2Head rivalry with Medvedev. Both wins came this year in title matches at the Coupe Rogers and US Open. They are both looking for their first win of the week in Group Andre Agassi.

The Spaniard is also looking to finish as year-end No. 1 in the ATP Rankings for the fifth time. If he defeats Medvedev, then Novak Djokovic must win the title in order to finish as year-end No. 1 for a record-tying sixth time.

Medvedev is seeking his 60th tour-level win of the season (59-19). He’s won 29 of his past 34 matches, including his first two ATP Masters 1000 titles at the Western & Southern Open (d. Goffin) and Rolex Shanghai Masters (d. Zverev), in addition to a maiden crown on home soil at the St. Petersburg Open (d. Coric).

Nadal saved the lone break point of the opening set at 3-3 with a passing shot winner. Both players remained even until midway through the tie-break, when Medvedev leaned into a forehand for a 5/3 mini-break advantage. Two points later, a big first serve from Medvedev gave him the early lead.

The two-time finalist (2010, 2013) at this event refused to bow out quietly, though. Nadal pumped his first after securing a break in the opening game of the second set and maintained the momentum. With Medvedev serving at 3-5, the Russian hit a forehand wide on set point to tie up the score.

More to follow…