Medvedev asserts dominance in Zverev clashes

As the 2025 season concluded, ATPTour.com unveiled our annual ‘Best Of’ series to revisit the year’s standout rivalries, matches, and surges. The renewed intensity between Daniil Medvedev and Alexander Zverev emerged as a highlight, with three high-stakes meetings that reignited their nine-year competition after just one clash in 2024. Medvedev stretched his ATP head-to-head lead to 14-8, each battle a tense blend of strategy and psychology on diverse surfaces.

Grass exposes momentum swings

In the semifinals of the Terra Wortmann Open in Halle, Medvedev outlasted Zverev 7-6(3), 6-7(1), 6-4, their first grass-court duel in nearly a decade. The low-bouncing surface demanded quick adjustments, with Medvedev using deep crosscourt backhands to pull his opponent wide early, building a set-and-a-break lead. Zverev responded with bold improvisation, including a half-volley winner after a grueling 21-shot rally that erased two match points and leveled the score in a whirlwind second-set tie-break.

Medvedev regained control in the decider, saving all four break points he faced through steady defense and precise underspin approaches that neutralized Zverev‘s power. This victory marked his first tour-level final in 15 months, though he later fell to Alexander Bublik in the championship match. The grass amplified their rivalry’s volatility, turning every shift into a test of nerve amid the crowd’s rising energy.

Hard courts ignite late momentum

Shifting to the China Open quarterfinals in Beijing, Medvedev dismantled Zverev 6-3, 6-3, channeling season averages of 7.7 on forehands and 7.8 on backhands into spikes of 9.1 and 8.8, as shown by TDI Insights. The indoor hard courts favored his one–two combinations, pairing flat serves with inside-in forehands that pinned the German deep and disrupted his baseline rhythm from the start. Zverev struggled to find crosscourt angles, his returns often floating short against Medvedev’s relentless depth.

This straight-sets win represented Medvedev’s first Top-5 victory on hard courts since the 2023 Nitto ATP Finals, fueling a revival with semifinal runs in Beijing and Shanghai, plus a title in Almaty. The stakes extended to the race for the Nitto ATP Finals, where the encounter added crucial points to his bid, even as he narrowly missed qualification. For Zverev, the defeat underscored the challenge of breaking through Medvedev’s tactical web, heightening the pressure in their ongoing duel.

Indoor battle breaks the streak

At the Paris Masters quarterfinals, Zverev halted his five-match losing run against Medvedev, prevailing 2-6, 6-3, 7-6(5) in a display of grit under the roof. After dropping a quick opener, he ramped up aggression with down-the-line backhands and varied serves that forced errors in prolonged exchanges, leveling the match amid the Parisian crowd’s fervor. The decider hinged on his resolve at 4-5, saving two match points on serve through brave inside-out winners that kept the pressure on.

This triumph, his first over Medvedev since Cincinnati in 2023, came while defending his ATP Masters 1000 title and boosted his year-end standing. Medvedev’s early dominance relied on slice backhands and crosscourt patterns, but Zverev’s refusal to fade in the clutch tie-break flipped the dynamic, revealing his growing adaptability late in the season. As 2025 faded, their rivalry’s arc—from Medvedev’s command to Zverev’s defiance—set the stage for 2026 clashes where mental edges and surface tweaks could redefine the balance once more.