Medvedev and Thiem are the heavy favourites (and Thiem will win) – Eye of the Coach #15

Djokovic’s stunning departure from the US Open blew a hole in the men’s draw and means that there will be a new Grand Slam champion on the men’s side. In the latest edition of Eye of the Coach, Patrick Mouratoglou picks out the two men most likely to be holding the trophy come Sunday evening.

“It takes a lot of mental strength,” Mouratoglou says. “That’s probably the number one quality of the champions. And we’ll see which one of those guys has the strongest mind. The top three are not here. And it’s the first time for such a long time. Those young guys are trying to win a Grand Slam. And it’s too difficult. We see it all the time. You have to beat at least two out of the three best players of all time to win a Grand Slam.. Just to say how difficult it is. And suddenly, two are out and the one who’s winning most of the Grand Slams is out.”

Thiem and Medvedev the two big favourites

Having reached the Australian Open final in January, second seed Thiem has picked up where he left off in Melbourne and has dropped just one set on his way to the quarter-finals. Medvedev reached the final in New York 12 months ago and is into the last eight without dropping a set. Mouratoglou says they have the edge on the rest.

“So it’s very interesting because I feel like we’re going to discover a lot about them, about their real personality. Because being a champion, it’s most of all and use it to your advantage rather than having the pressure being a burden. The situation, which is an incredible opportunity for Dominic Thiem, for Medvedev, for Zverev. And I would name only those three, because I think And I say three, I should say two, because I think Thiem and Medvedev are now the two heavy favourites.”

“Dominic Thiem and Medvedev are the two only players who have reach Grand Slam finals. Dominic Thiem three and Medvedev only one. But it was in that tournament last year, having an incredible summer and again this year. There are the two guys who are also a bit older. There’s a bit more experience being here for longer, being the ones who are pushing the top three the most. So those two guys will see how good they are in handling the pressure.”

Zverev has less pressure

Zverev reached his first US Open semi-final with a four-set win over Borna Coric and though he’s not playing his best, he is two wins from the title. Mouratoglou feels he may benefit from having less pressure than Thiem and Medvedev.

“For the other ones, It’s not as much as pressure, but it’s also an opportunity,” he says. “So we’re going to discover that.. We’re going to discover who they are more. And how they handle pressure and how they’re able to take their chance. The two who have the strongest mind are Medvedev and Thiem. But they are on the same side of the draw. Which give an opportunity to one of the other guys. I didn’t mention Zverev on purpose because I feel like he has less pressure. Have been two, three years ago, he would be the one with the most pressure. And maybe it’s his chance because I feel like he feels more free this year. Since the start of the tournament he’s playing more freely. He looks more confident. And maybe he wins one or two more matches and suddenly he’ll be able to. The one who impressed me the most is Thiem. More than Medvedev. I think he’s gonna win.”