“See Absolute History”: Dominic Thiem Considers Novak Djokovic as Huge Favorite Against Daniil Medvedev in US Open 2021 Final

On Sunday, when Daniil Medvedev plays against the 20-time grand slam champion and world number one Novak Djokovic, he can go into the match knowing that his opponent might be under pressure as he chases history to win the ‘Calendar Slam’ and also his 21st major title.

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But, the Russian might already know that there is no one better than Novak Djokovic in the men’s locker room when it comes to producing peak tennis in a high-stake game. Thanks to the Calendar Slam, one can expect the Serb to put out his best performance in the final against Medvedev.

Both Djokovic and Medvedev played a few high-octane entertainers over the years and the fans at Arthur Ashe Stadium can expect a similar battle between the two on Sunday as well.

Talking about this highly-anticipated contest between two of the best players in the world at the moment, 2020 US Open champion Dominic Thiem talked to Eurosport about the Serb’s chase for history.

“Will do everything  he can to reach it” – Thiem on Novak Djokovic winning the Calendar Slam

“I can imagine there is such huge pressure, something none of us can even imagine. He [Djokovic] is still the favorite for this tournament and the only one with a Slam title left in the draw. He has this target in mind and will do everything he can to reach it”, Thiem said.

The Austrian tennis player, who is currently recovering from a right-wrist injury, has also expressed his desire to be in a position to stop Djokovic from achieving the record.

“I would like to be in his shoes and experience that, but I would prefer to be in my shoes to stop him doing that. Either we see a great young player winning their first Slam or we see absolute history”, concluded the Austrian.

Dominic Thiem came close to defeating Novak Djokovic in a grand slam final recently. The duo faced each other in the finals of Australian Open last year. Despite putting his best efforts, Thiem bowed down to Djokovic’s relentless grit.

Medvedev needs to be at his absolute best to have a chance against Djokovic in US Open final

In-fact, the same quality is what makes the Serb a heavy-favorite against Daniil Medvedev on Sunday. Even though Medvedev defeated Djokovic a few times on the ATP tour, all those victories came in three sets.

When it’s a five-setter, it’s safe to say that Novak Djokovic will always find a way to win. The same happened during this fortnight at the US Open. There were players who challenged the Serb by winning the first set but failed to capitalize on the momentum and lost the contest eventually.

That being said, it will be interesting to see how Daniil Medvedev handles Novak Djokovic provided the former wins the first set in the US Open final.

Also read: “She Was Very Emotional”: Novak Djokovic on Being in a Similar Situation As Serena Williams Was in 2015