Avoiding letdown, winning St. Petersburg proves Medvedev belongs

Russia's Daniil Medvedev had a huge hard-court season and has kept his ride going with a title in St. Petersburg, his first event since reaching the final of the US Open.

That has given him even more confidence to establish himself in the upper ranks of the men's the game.

"I came here to win and I did it," he said of his victory in front of his home crowds. "It was an amazing final and an amazing week."

The 23-year-old now has two titles and has reached five straight finals, starting by reaching the finals in Washington and Montreal before capturing his first Masters at Cincinnati.

There were many expecting him to have a letdown, Medvedev noted, and even he had questions coming into the week.

"It's probably the biggest wave I've caught in my career," Medvedev told press in Russian following the win. "Even before the tournament in St. Petersburg, I had questions about whether I could back up what I did, could keep playing the same tennis, cope with all the attention and media demands. I think I proved something to everyone."

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At the US Open, he dropped the first two sets easily against Rafael Nadal but came back and forced a fifth set, a big improvement on his straight-setter against Nadal in the Montreal final.

“At times I made errors I did not want or I wasn't serving the way I wanted. At times we played at a crazy level," he said. "I was technically losing, but from the first two sets then we played a five-hour match and that's the most important thing.

"I think that the two matches against Nadal show that I can adapt.”

According to Medvedev, his recent performances have earned him a  reputation among the players, with Nick Kyrgios asking his coach during Cincinnati whether Medvedev was a "machine" and if he slept.

"He replied, 'I recharge him at night, he doesn't sleep,’” said Medvedev.

But the Russian did acknowledge that his heavy schedule has produced some wear and tear, and might re-evaluate which events he will be playing.

Ranked No. 4, he has qualified for the ATP Tour Finals.