World No 1 Daniil Medvedev ended his losing streak in the final with a 7-5 6-0 win over England’s Cameron Norrie on Saturday to lift the title in Los Cabos, Mexico, and prepare for the defense of the US Open title.
The ban on Russian players at Wimbledon due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine forced Medvedev to miss the main tournament and he traveled to Mexico for the ATP 250 event for his first tournament since June.
Most of Medvedev’s success over the years has come from hardship and he hasn’t lost a set this week on his way to his first title of the season.
“Every game is great, but the final is always special,” Medvedev said. “In the final you play the best player this week, so it’s always a high level game and I’m really happy that I showed some good level, some shots. good in such an important game.”
The Russian entered the fray with last year’s champion Norrie, ranked 12th in the world, having lost five consecutive finals since last year’s Paris Masters in November. The 26-year-old was also beaten. lost in last year’s ATP Finals title match.
He then fell to the Australian Open final in early 2022 before losing the grass-court championship matches in the Netherlands and Germany.
Norrie, meanwhile, is looking to defend the title he won last year and claim his third ATP title of the year.
Cameron Norrie failed to win third ATP title of the year
Medvedev needed treatment during his 11th game on Saturday when he scratched his hand on the field and bled while hitting a ball, shortly after left-handed Norrie saved two set points to level the score 5-5 in the set. Opening.
The Russian, who won her first Grand Slam title at Flushing Meadows last year, has flourished since then, winning the next eight matches to crown the competition.
“It’s not easy. Cam is a great player, so it’s really stressful,” Medvedev said. “When you play Cam, you know you have to fight for every point.
“Actually the bleeding helped me think a little bit and I was able to hold my nerves a little bit more. Since then I just tried to play well and that was enough for today.”
Norrie said: “I fought as hard as I could, but Daniil played too well. Well done to you and your team. You definitely deserved it this week.
“I just want to say a big thank you to everyone for supporting me. I love playing in Mexico and that’s why I’m back. I really feel good here.”
