3 reasons why Novak Djokovic couldn't complete the Calendar Slam

Daniil Medvedev created history at the 2021 US Open on Sunday - simply by preventing Novak Djokovic from creating it himself.

Medvedev beat Djokovic 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 to win his maiden Grand Slam. In doing so, he also broke the heart of the Serb, who fell just short in his bid to win the Calendar Slam.

Several celebrities and former stars were in attendance at the Arthur Ashe stadium, anticipating a historic win for Djokovic. Given the 34-year-old's record in the best-of-five format, he had entered the fixture as the firm favorite.

But Daniil Medvedev had other ideas. The 25-year-old had evidently learned from the beatdown he received from Djokovic at the Australian Open final earlier this year, and adapted his strategy accordingly.

Djokovic was visibly listless and possibly even fatigued throughout the match, and that played a role in the surprisingly one-sided scoreline. But Medvedev still had to play some of his best tennis to clinch the biggest win of his career, which is exactly what he did.

On that note, let's take a look at three key reasons why Novak Djokovic fell at the last hurdle in his Calendar Slam bid:

#1 Daniil Medvedev outplayed Novak Djokovic from the baseline

A simply stunning performance from @DaniilMedwed pic.twitter.com/0sF1r2CiNg
— US Open Tennis (@usopen) September 12, 2021

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Novak Djokovic rarely gets outplayed from the baseline, given his incredible agility, reflexes and defense. But Daniil Medvedev out-defended and outhit the Serb on Sunday, much to the surprise of everyone.

The Russian returned almost every shot with interest, and even got the most powerful of strikes from Djokovic back in play. The Serb tried hard to breach Medvedev's defense by switching direction, rushing to the net and introducing slices, but to no avail.

Medvedev made the World No. 1 play the extra shot in every rally, and that perhaps played a part in depleting the Serb's energy reserves. It also meant that Medvedev, who is not your typical ballbasher, did not have to actually hit through Djokovic to win a majority of the points.

All he had to do was get his enough balls back in play and take advantage of the fact that Djokovic was woefully out of rhythm.

#2 Daniil Medvedev used his 2nd serve as a first serve to take the racket out of Novak Djokovic's hands

Winning the first set has proven to be a rather meaningless task against Novak Djokovic this year. The Serb hadn't lost a single Grand Slam match after losing the opening set in 2021, until he met Daniil Medvedev.

But while Djokovic has a tendency to come back strongly after losing the opening set, it was still imperative for the Russian to win it. He couldn't have won the match without heaping additional pressure on Djokovic, who was already feeling the heat due to the stakes involved and the fatigue from his grueling semifinal.

Since Medvedev needed a fast start, the best tactic he could employ was to make full use of his biggest weapon - his serve. Which is exactly what he did; the Russian won 15/15 of his first serve points in the opening set.

At times Medvedev even used his second serve as a first serve, hitting it at well over 100 mph. That took away the slightest opportunity Djokovic could have had in his return games.

Medvedev's strategy set the tone for the rest of the match, even though the Russian's numbers on his delivery dipped in the second and third sets. Djokovic was seldom sure about his returning position because the doubts that had been planted in his head in the first set itself.

Interestingly, Medvedev had adopted a similar approach when he beat the Serb at Cincinnati in 2019.

#3 Novak Djokovic felt the weight of expectations, which made his game too erratic for his liking

Novak Djokovic congratulates Daniil Medvedev after the match

It was clear that Novak Djokovic was nervous right from the first point of the match. He struggled to time his groundstrokes, and for large parts had no answer to Daniiil Medvedev's monstrous serve.

The Serb tried taking control of the match by charging to the net, but even that tactic fell apart later on.

You could see pressure writ on Djokovic's face throughout the match. The only time he smiled was when he broke Medvedev's serve for the first time in the match late in the third set.

But that smile was accompanied by tears too, as Djokovic understood it was too little, too late.

Playing for history made the Serb's game ugly and at times painful to watch, as he coughed up a whopping 38 unforced errors. The fact that he couldn't muster too many winners (27 compared to Medvedev's 38) either shut the doors on his Calendar Slam bid once and for all.