Stat of the Day: Daniil Medvedev records 60th win of the year with opening victory in Shanghai

Daniil Medvedev recorded his 60th win of the year in Shanghai on Saturday, defeating Cristian Garin in his opening match at the Masters 1000 event, 6-3, 6-3. It’s the second time he’s reached that milestone in a season in his career, having won 63 matches in 2021.

And with that, he joins a very exclusive (and impressive) list.

Medvedev is now just the fourth active men’s player to have multiple 60-win seasons in his career, joining three absolute legends: Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray.

ACTIVE MEN WITH MULTIPLE 60-WIN SEASONS:
~ 10 seasons—Novak Djokovic: 2007 (68), 2008 (64), 2009 (78), 2010 (61), 2011 (70), 2012 (75), 2013 (74), 2014 (61), 2015 (82), 2016 (65)
~ 9 seasons—Rafael Nadal: 2005 (79), 2007 (70), 2008 (82), 2009 (66), 2010 (71), 2011 (69), 2013 (75), 2015 (61), 2017 (68)
~ 3 seasons—Andy Murray: 2009 (66), 2015 (71), 2016 (78)
~ 2 seasons—Daniil Medvedev: 2021 (63), 2023 (60)

After his victory over former Top 20 player Garin, Medvedev was asked if he was aware he was going for his 60th win of the year.

“I knew I was close because I think in Beijing, I saw that I was at 56,” he said. “I will be honest, I don’t think I care in a way how many wins I have in a season, but what I heard is that my record is 63 after the match, and that’s pretty close, so I would be happy to beat it.

“Sometimes we manage to beat records that were here for a long time, sometimes it’s a record against yourself, you know, a new title, something new. And if I manage to do it, it’s going to be great, a great season, and I’m happy to continue this way.”

Standing between Medvedev and his 61st win of 2023 will be Sebastian Korda, who won the pair’s most recent meeting in the third round of this year’s Australian Open, 7-6 (7), 6-3, 7-6 (4).

“Tough match because the only time I played him I lost and in straight sets and in a Grand Slam,” Medvedev said. “So I for sure remember it. He played well. He was very dominant, in a way, and that’s how he plays, so it’s going to be interesting for me. I’m in a good shape now, so I'll try to do better than last time and try to win.”

Medvedev did actually play Korda one other time, at the Masters 1000 in Paris in 2021, and he got the better of the American, 4-6, 6-1, 6-3.