21 year old Russian Daniil Medvedev, a new top 50 player, made a career breakthrough at Wimbledon, his third grand slam–upsetting Stan Wawrinka in four sets 6-4 3-6 6-4 6-1, for his first ever win against a top 5 player. Medvedev, a big hitter, started strong and upset Wawrinka’s rhythm and timing, securing a break midway through the first, and was rarely pressured on serve, as Wawrinka only got a break in set two. The Swiss was broken at the end of the third, and then slumped horribly in the fourth set, his game disintegrating as Medvedev brutalized him with powerful, aggressive ground strokes and crisp serves to get a breadstick fourth set victory.

Medvedev is part of a new generation of Russian men’s tennis, and with the likes of Andrey Rublev and Karen Khachanov rapidly improving alongside him the future is bright. This young Russian won well over 100 matches below the ATP level over the last two seasons, and earned his way into the Wimbledon main draw by grinding away in the minor leagues. He has now earned 10 wins on grass this year, and in his Wimbledon debut looks set to make a deeper run, stating in his post match interview that he enjoys everything about Wimbledon, and was proud of his first grand slam win.

The three-time Slam champion Wawrinka looked unnerved again at Wimbledon, he’s never reached a semifinal at SW19, and for multiple seasons now he’s greatly struggled on the grass, unable to reach the heights of his other elite contemporaries such as Roger Federer and Andy Murray. Wawrinka was a favorite in the match at the start, but he didn’t play like it, his game was shaky throughout the match, and Medvedev played up to his potential, truly enjoying his experience and the power of the moment.

Main Photo: