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ATPTour.com previews Friday's first semi-final
As the US Open hits the business end, Friday’s first semi-final pits Russia’s Daniil Medvedev, who is blazing through the summer North American hard-court swing, against Grigor Dimitrov, a Bulgarian star starting to burn bright once more.
While much has changed for both players since they split their two FedEx ATP Head2Head meetings in 2017 at the Fever-Tree Championships (Dimitrov won 6-3, 3-6, 6-3) and the Citi Open (Medvedev won 6-4, 6-2), Friday’s clash will certainly be popcorn viewing.
“[I’m] really happy for Grigor, that he's coming back to his shape,” said Medvedev. “I think he's [No.] 78 in the ATP Rankings right now, before this week, so he's definitely going to go up. I saw some matches of him here. He was playing unbelievable, I think… We all know what he's capable of when he's playing like he can.”
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Medvedev has carried his hot form into five matches at this year’s US Open, striking 78 aces (only behind John Isner) and 52 forehand winners. He's won 78 per cent of his first-service points and enjoyed remarkable consistency on return of serve (a tournament-leading 122 first-serve points won and No. 2 overall with 128 second-serve points won).
But former World No. 3 Dimitrov should be feeling fresher, having won four matches over 10 hours and 16 minutes (he received a walkover over Borna Coric in the second round) - compared to Medvedev's court time of 12 hours and 33 minutes.
Looking ahead to playing Medvedev, Dimitrov said, “He's been pretty focused throughout the whole summer. He's been having a great summer, a lot of confidence building up, winning Cincinnati, being already here. A lot of good matches, a lot behind him really… I've just seen him a little bit in the background here, how he has played. Clearly, he's doing something right. Again, it's not going to be an easy match.”
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Medvedev may have had a rancorous relationship with Big Apple fans during his run over the past 12 days, but one of the ATP Tour’s brightest talents in 2019 has finally won over their hearts with honest on-court interviews and sterling performances. Taped up, and willing to move away from his traditional baseline game, Medvedev showcased his personality and tactical nous in his four-set quarter-final victory over 2016 champion Stan Wawrinka.
Over the past six weeks, the 23-year-old Medvedev has gone on a tear, compiling a 19-2 record and has a circuit-best 49 match wins in 2019. He captured his first ATP Masters 1000 crown last month at the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati, which propelled him into the Top 5 of the ATP Rankings for the first time. Medvedev also finished runner-up at the ATP 500-level tournament in Washington, D.C. (l. to Kyrgios) and, prior to Cincinnati, at the Masters 1000-level Coupe Rogers in Montreal (l. to Nadal).
More About Medvedev
* Cincinnati Match Report: Medvedev Claims Maiden Masters Crown
* Feature: The Perplexing, Unorthodox Artist Who Just Keeps Winning
* ATP Rankings Tribute: Behind A Renewed Mindset, Medvedev Cracks The Top 10
While Medvedev is already assured of his place at the 2019 Nitto ATP Finals, to be held at The O2 in London from 10-17 November, his semi-final opponent on Friday at Flushing Meadows is beginning to recapture the kind of form and confidence that took him to the 2017 season finale trophy.
From a career-high No. 3 in the ATP Rankings to his current position of No. 78, Dimitrov has endured a loss of form, a right shoulder injury and constant questioning ever since the biggest day of his career in south-east London. His five-set quarter-final win over Roger Federer, the five-time former champion, on Tuesday night, indicate that the 28-year-old has finally turned a corner.
Having come into the US Open with a 12-15 record on the 2019 season, Dimitrov is now within one win of 300 career match victories. He'll be sure to draw upon his experience of competing in two previous Grand Slam championship semi-finals at 2014 Wimbledon (l. to Federer) and at the 2017 Australian Open (l. to Nadal) in order to attain a new chapter in his career.
More About Dimitrov
* Quarter-final Reaction: 'It Was That Low I Don't Even Want To Go There'
* Quarter-final Match Report: Dimitrov Stuns Federer In Five Sets
* Feature: Dimitrov On His Renewed Perspective: ‘This Is What I Was Meant To Do’
A CLOSER LOOK AT MEDVEDEV vs. DIMITROV (Stats Through US Open QFs)
D. MEDVEDEV (5) G. DIMITROV
78 Aces 32
38 Double Faults 18
40% Unreturned Serves 29%
59% 1st Serve % 62%
78% 1st Serve Points 77%
55% 2nd Serve Points 59%
15 Broken 8
44 Break Points Faced 29
93 Games Served 75
84% Service Games Held 89%
118 mph Average 1st Serve 115 mph
93 mph Average 2nd Serve 86 mph
130 mph Fastest Serve 132 mph
77% Returns in Play 73%
8 Return Winners 5
33% 1st Return Points Won 32%
56% 2nd Return Points Won 47%
28 Breaks of Serve 19
59 Break Points 50
47% Pct. Converted 38%
93 Return Games Played 72
30% Return Games Won % 26%
52 Forehand Winners 64
91 Forehand Unforced Errors 72
36 Backhand Winners 22
52 Backhand Unforced Errors 69
21 Winners at Net 23
196 Total Winners 153
186 Total Unforced Errors 160
78 of 129 Net Points Won 64 of 90
60% Net Points Won 71%
51% Baseline Points Won 53%
80 Games Lost 62
4 Sets Lost 3
12:33 Time on Court 10:16
Statistics courtesy: Leo Levin/SMT

ATPTour.com previews the second semi-final
Such is the nature of tennis that different generations regularly clash and Friday’s second semi-final at the US Open is no different, when Rafael Nadal meets Matteo Berrettini for the first time under the lights on Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Nadal, who won his first ATP Tour match as a 15-year-old in his hometown of Mallorca in 2002, has been a long-term inspiration to Berrettini, who, at 23 years of age, contests his first Grand Slam championship semi-final at Flushing Meadows.
After his epic quarter-final win over Gael Monfils on Thursday, Berrettini recalled watching Nadal beat Guillermo Coria in the 2005 Internazionali BNL d'Italia final, as an eight-year-old, because one of the sport's greatest clay-court matches happened to be on a television channel that normally screened cartoons.
“I remember the final in Rome against Coria,” remembered Berrettini. “It was on a channel that was about cartoons. I was young. 'These guys, I mean, six hours. Come on! I want to catch my cartoons'. I remember that it was unbelievable.
“I think also, I was going to school and a lot of my classmates, they actually started to follow tennis more, to watch tennis more because the match was free. They were, ‘Oh, you're playing this sport then?’ I was, like, ‘Yeah. I'm dreaming about playing these matches.' And now I'm here. So I'm happy.”
The 2005 Rome final came a few weeks before Nadal’s life changed forever with his first major championship crown at Roland Garros. Fast forward 14 years and the Spaniard has won 18 Grand Slam championship trophies, and Friday’s match against Berrettini will be Nadal’s 33rd major semi-final (26-6 record).
Looking ahead to meeting the Italian, Nadal said, “Berrettini is having a great year. He's in the semi-finals, winning a lot of good matches… I need to play my best, and I think today [against Diego Schwartzman] I took a step forward.”
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With a crushing forehand (111 winners) and big serve (66 aces in five matches), Berrettini can match Nadal's firepower on Friday, so may be able to dictate, but recovering from his draining four-hour win over Monfils - the biggest Grand Slam win of his career - could be a determining factor.
Berrettini has spent 15 hours and 23 minutes on court in five victories at the US Open, while Nadal has played four matches totalling nine hours and 43 minutes. He got a walkover against Thanasi Kokkinakis in the second round.
Berrettini, who lost to Denis Kudla in the 2018 US Open first round, has enjoyed a stellar season, which includes two ATP Tour crowns at the Hungarian Open in Budapest (d. Krajinovic) and at the Mercedes Cup in Stuttgart (d. Auger-Aliassime). He also finished runner-up at the BMW Open by FWU in Munich (l. to Garin) and has a 34-15 match record this season.
As a result of his US Open performance, Berrettini has jumped from 14th to ninth position in the 2019 ATP Race To London for a spot at the Nitto ATP Finals, to be held at The O2 in London from 10-17 November.
More About Berrettini
Quarter-final Match Report: Berrettini Beats Monfils In Fifth Set Epic
Feature: What Has Inspired Matteo To His 2019 Surge?
Over the past 10 days, Nadal, who in July became the first player to clinch a spot at this year’s elite season finale, remains on course to add to his 2010, 2013, 2017 US Open titles haul and further improve his chances of finishing year-end No. 1 for a fifth time.
The 33-year-old Spaniard has a 45-6 match record in 2019, which includes a record-extending 12th title at Roland Garros (d. Thiem), plus two ATP Masters 1000 crowns in Rome (his ninth) and the Coupe Rogers In Montreal. He also finished runner-up at the Australian Open (l. to Djokovic) at the start of the year.
Big-match experience may be the deciding factor on Friday night, but Berrettini will be sure to do his best against Nadal, a player he considers “the greatest fighter ever in this sport. It's unbelievable [what] he's doing. I admire him, the way he's on the court. His attitude is something that, I think, it's close to the perfection.”
More About Nadal
Feature: Rapid Rafa - Serve, Play & Win Faster
Quarter-final Match Report: Nadal Battles Past Schwartzman
Quarter-final Reaction: How Does Nadal Describe His Fighting Spirit?
A CLOSER LOOK AT BERRETTINI vs. NADAL (Stats Through US Open QFs)
M. BERRETTINI (24) R. NADAL (2)
66 Aces 26
24 Double Faults 11
34% Unreturned Serves 32%
57% 1st Serve % 57%
78% 1st Serve Points 79%
54% 2nd Serve Points 56%
12 Broken 6
44 Break Points Faced 16
99 Games Served 59
88% Service Games Held 90%
123 mph Average 1st Serve 117 mph
96 mph Average 2nd Serve 97 mph
138 mph Fastest Serve 128 mph
74% Returns in Play 78%
7 Return Winners 3
29% 1st Return Points Won 41%
54% 2nd Return Points Won 52%
22 Breaks of Serve 23
60 Break Points 48
37% Pct. Converted 48%
97 Return Games Played 56
23% Return Games Won % 41%
111 Forehand Winners 55
124 Forehand Unforced Errors 67
33 Backhand Winners 18
94 Backhand Unforced Errors 42
30 Winners at Net 14
250 Total Winners 124
248 Total Unforced Errors 122
98 of 135 Net Points Won 38 of 48
73% Net Points Won 79%
47% Baseline Points Won 54%
88 Games Lost 39
5 Sets lost 1
15:23 Time on Court 09:43
Statistics courtesy: Leo Levin/SMT