Daniil Medvedev cruises past Stefan Kozlov in first round to start US Open title defence in New York

Daniil Medvedev got his US Open title defence off to a smooth start with a straight-sets victory over unseeded American Stefan Kozlov. The Russian faced a determined fight from the 24-year-old at times, but comfortably won 6-2 6-4 6-0 in just over two hours, hitting 36 winners in the process. Ad Medvedev, who is bidding to become the first male player to successfully defend the US Open title since Roger Federer in 2008, will face France’s Arthur Rinderknech in Round Two.

US Open‘That was a huge moment for me’ – Murray on historic 2012 US Open victory10 HOURS AGO Kozlov quickly showed his spirit by immediately breaking back after losing a game on his own serve early in the opening set, but Medvedev’s quality shone through as he racked up three consecutive breaks to take the opening set. The American continued to ask questions of the world No.1 in the second, breaking back to make it 4-4, but Medvedev responded by winning the next eight games in a row in an emphatic finish. «It was not easy conditions, hot and humid — I was sweating a lot.

I had to be solid, that was the key today, and I'm happy to be in the second round,” Medvedev said. »I remember in juniors it was impossible to beat him. He destroyed me.

I was happy to get my revenge today. I has an unusual game so I just tried to be solid and find the right shots at the right time." Medvedev came to New York after a period of mixed form, and he’s yet to win a Grand Slam title this year after finishing as runner-up in Australia, losing in the fourth round at Roland-Garros and being unable to compete at Wimbledon due to a ban on Russian players. He made a strong start on Arthur Ashe, despite spirited resistance from Kozlov, making his main draw debut at the US Open.