Novak Djokovic in danger of losing No 1 ranking again as Daniil Medvedev closes in

ATP Tour
Daniil Medvedev

Daniil Medvedev moved within one more win of reclaiming the world No 1 spot as he moved into the quarter-finals with a 7-5 6-1 win over Jenson Brooksby.

Medvedev did not have it all his own way as he was forced to rally from 5-3 down in the first set before going on to book his place in the last eight in 80 minutes.

“Jenson has the potential to be a top player,” declared Medvedev after his latest win. “When you say top, you never know if it’s No.1, No.3 or No.10 but he’s a really good player, who is playing better than his ranking.

“That’s tough because he’s going to get players like me, (Alexander) Zverev and Novak in rounds like the quarter-finals. He needs to beat us sometimes to climb the rankings.

“I knew it wouldn’t be an easy match, especially on this surface. For me, I don’t think it suits my game perfectly, especially against the type of player like Jenson.

“It wasn’t easy at the beginning. I didn’t have any solutions but just had to keep playing and the crucial moment came when he didn’t convert for a double break. I managed to make him serve for the set. That’s not easy. He got a bit tight and I managed to play better and he started going down in level.

“I feel I am low in intensity a lot of the time to try and keep my energy. Today it wasn’t enough in the beginning, so I tried to pump myself up and he started going down in energy. After that I thought I had to try to close it out as fast as possible.”

With Djokovic missing the Miami Open over his refusal to take a Covid-19 vaccine, Medvedev could now cash in in the grand manner if he wins one more match in Florida.

Daniil Medvedev Novak Djokovic

Latest