Survival mode: Medvedev demonstrates Grand Slam steel in latest comeback from two sets down

Week one at the Grand Slams can be an adventure. Packed schedule, after-midnight finishes, and the perpetual cacophony ringing out from all the show courts, as fifth sets get decided in tiebreaks and top seeds fight for their survival and the dream of a deep run at a Grand Slam.

Day 5 at the Australian was such a monstrosity that some pundits are wondering if it was one of the best days of Grand Slam tennis ever recorded.

It wasn’t the best day for everyone, however. There was fifth-seeded Jessica Pegula, who went out listlessly to Clara Burel of France, and third-seeded Elena Rybakina, whose valiant efforts ended in sincere heartbreak as she lost the longest tiebreak in Grand Slam history and feel to Anna Blinkova, 6-4, 4-6, 7-6(20).

Daniil Medvedev took the court after that stunning battle, and admitted after his five-set win over Emil Ruusuvuori that he was exhausted when he took the court.

“When I went on the court, I was a little bit exhausted already,” the No.3 seed told the thinned-out crowd at 3:39 a.m. local time, after rallying from two sets down to dispatch the Finn, 3-6 6-7(1) 6-4 7-6(1) 6-0. “This one is for sure going to stay in my memory.”

But Medvedev, ever resilient, made the most of the misery as he created another signature comeback to keep from going sad in the wee hours of the morning at the Happy Slam.

It was a late finish by any standard, but not the latest. In fact, there are two matches that ended later at previous Australian Opens, the first in 2008 and the second last year.

The only matches which have ended later at the Australian Open are:

• Lleyton Hewitt’s third-round win over Marcos Baghdatis, at 4:34 a.m. in 2008
• Andy Murray’s win over Thanasi Kokkinakis, at 4:05 a.m. last year.

Whether it was late or not won’t matter in the end. What will matter is that Medvedev has kept alive his hopes of winning another major. He is a two-time finalist in Melbourne and, at the age of 27, he showed once again why he is one of the best hard court players in the world. His performance in five-setters has drastically improved at the majors over the last three seasons, and with it, his chances of going deep and winning the trophy.

You have to survive to thrive, the saying goes, and Medvedev did that on Day 5, with a Day 6 finish to boot.

After losing his first six five-setters at the majors, Medvedev has now won five of his last eight, and rallied from two sets to love down three times. In 2022, he fought back from two sets down to defeat Felix Auger-Aliassime in the quarter-finals, and went on to reach his second Australian Open final.

The 27-year-old is hoping that his latest Houdini comeback will spark a similar run. He’ll face Auger-Aliassime in the third round.

Medvedev to fans: thanks for being strong

“Honestly guys I would not be here,” Medvedev said, breaking into laughter. “Thanks for staying. If I would be a tennis fan, I would come, and at 1 AM I would be like ‘Okay, let’s go home, we’re gonna catch the end of the match on the TV. We’re gonna watch 30 minutes and then go to bed. Thanks guys, you are strong.