Daniil Medvedev has the “It” factor, one of the traits that separate the great players from the good. He, also, possesses all the shots to be a great, has sly confidence, embraces challenges, and where his emotions once got the best of him, they are now an asset.

These traits were on full display in his last Australian Open match against Nick Kyrgios both on and off the court.

Medvedev was fully aware of the atmosphere he was in for at Rod Laver arena against the Australian who would work the home crowd into a frenzy. He was aware of some of the on-court antics, and tactics he would face. He acknowledged that there were things he appreciated in Kyrgios’ game, and some he was not so fond of when he addressed the media before the match.

And Kyrgios did not surprise anyone when he brought all those antics to the court against the Russian. He stoked the crowd for support immediately and admonished them at times later. He pushed the envelope drawing a time violation while receiving serve. He led the crowd by dancing on the court to their cheers, took a lap after a sensational shot, and received a warning for cursing. In short, Kyrgios brought his normal game. All the while, Medvedev kept a stoic demeanor and worked through the first two sets to take a commanding 2-0 set lead.

His all-business approach worked as Kyrgios was heard in a changeover asking himself and anyone who would listen, what he had to do to beat the two-seed.

However, Kyrgios took it to another level in the fourth set and drove the crowd into full-throat in their support.  They cheered when Medvedev missed serves, and they often chanted the now-infamous Ronaldo cheer “siu” which many players have mistaken as “boos”, between Medvedev’s first and second serves. All of this helped fuel Kyrgios to take the third set, but Medvedev quickly turned it around in the fourth and as has often been the case, Kyrgios fizzled out and the two-seed advanced. In fairness, the Aussie has not been able to log a lot of court time recently and was coming off a bout with Covid.

Nonetheless, Medvedev went about with a business-as-usual attitude, not falling into any traps set by Kyrgios.

@WILLIAM WEST/agence france-presse

Not only did he handle the talented right-hander, but he also handled the crowd afterward. Not fearing playing a villain to the patrons, he did not hold his tongue in his post-match interview with Jim Courier.

The former grand slam champion asked Medvedev about the crowd. Medvedev responded, “When you get booed between first and second serve, it's not easy, so you just have to stay calm and win the match.”

As the crowd chanted during his interview, Medvedev said he couldn’t hear Courier, prompting the Russian to reply, “show some respect for Jim Courier.”

“If you respect somebody, at least respect Jim Courier,” he said.

Bottom line, Medvedev handled the adversity seamlessly, played with poise at a high level, did not back down, and served notice that with or without crowd support, he is in Melbourne with the goal of winning the title, and will let his game speak for itself. And with the absence of Novak Djokovic, it is hard to bet against him. He will no doubt have more obstacles ahead of him on his journey, but this version of Medvedev has the wherewithal to dial it in, play his style, tune out distractions, with a single-minded focus to advance. This will serve him well as he moves forward in his run for the Norman Brooks Cup.