Daniil Medvedev is convinced Novak Djokovic will be glued to Sunday's Australian Open final, as the men's grand slam record goes on the line once more.
It was Medvedev who denied Djokovic a 21st singles major in the US Open final in September, inflicting a straight-sets defeat on the Serbian who was chasing a sweep of the 2021 grand slams.
Now Medvedev stands in the way of another of the 'Big Three', with Rafael Nadal also chasing a 21st slam and the outright lead on the all-time list.
Djokovic, Nadal and Federer each have 20 grand slam singles titles, and it remains to be seen whether any of that trio triumph again on the big stage, with Medvedev confirming himself as a leader of the upcoming generation.
The deportation of Djokovic from Australia before this tournament caused a major stir, denying the nine-time champion at Melbourne Park a run at history.
And all Djokovic can do is sit and watch from a distance, perhaps hoping for a Medvedev victory.
"I guess last time Rafa was watching near the TV, I don't know who he was cheering for," Medvedev said, harking back to the US Open. "But I think Novak will be watching this one in two days also."
The mention of Djokovic in Medvedev's on-court interview led to rumblings in the crowd, with many Australians having been glad to see him removed from the country when his visa was revoked.
When Djokovic was again mentioned in a follow-up interview with Eurosport, Medvedev said: "I'm definitely not going to think about this before or during the match. After the match, depending on the result, I'm going to think about him a little bit and about Roger probably also."
Medvedev's first taste of a grand slam final was against Nadal at the 2019 US Open, when the Russian lost a five-set thriller.
"We've played a few matches since then, and I'm ready," Medvedev said. "I know Rafa is a very strong player and I will need to show my best to try to win this match."
Medvedev, runner-up to Djokovic in Melbourne last year, aimed an outburst of anger towards umpire Jaume Campistol during the second set of his four-set victory over Stefanos Tsitsipas on Friday.
He was furious at Tsitsipas seemingly being coached by the Greek star's father from the players' box, but Medvedev quickly realised his own behaviour was unhelpful.
"I don't think emotions, bad emotions, help me too much and when I made it, many times I lose the match because of this," he said. "As soon as I did it, I was like, 'That was a big mistake'.
"But I'm happy I managed to re-concentrate for the beginning of the third set."
Having lost the second set, Medvedev snatched a crucial break at the end of the third, before cruising through the fourth to seal a 7-6 (7-5) 4-6 6-4 6-1 victory.
Medvedev said he had felt "so dead" after beating Felix Auger-Aliassime in a near five-hour marathon in the quarter-finals, but his energy has been replenished.
"I'm happy today was not five hours, so I could recover faster for the next one," he said.
"I'm gonna play against one of the greatest, and what's funny is again I'm going to play someone going for the 21st slam."
Before the tussle with Nadal, Melbourne will be gripped by Ash Barty's own pursuit of history, bidding to become the first Australian since Chris O'Neil at the 1978 tournament to land the women's singles title.
Barty faces Danielle Collins on Saturday, and Medvedev, as is his wont, managed to rile some of Friday's crowd by being non-committal on whether he would watch Barty, whose title match begins at 19:30 local time (08:30 GMT).
"I'm usually going to dinner at 8.15pm," Medvedev said.
Urged by on-court interviewer Jim Courier to come up with a different answer, Medvedev added: "I'm going to watch it on my phone guys, I'm going to watch it."
Sinner avoids O'Connell upset at US Open
Jannik Sinner beat Australia's Christopher O'Connell in straight sets to reach the fourth round of the US Open on Saturday, avoiding a similar fate to Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic.
The men's draw at Flushing Meadows has been blown wide open by early exits for Alcaraz and Djokovic, but the top seed remains in the hunt after a composed performance.
He reached the fourth round for a fourth consecutive year with a routine 6-1 6-4 6-2 victory, setting the tone with several huge groundstrokes in the opening set.
O'Connell never looked likely to fight back as Sinner smashed 46 winners in a ruthless performance, wrapping up his win in one hour and 56 minutes.
The Australian Open champion will face either Tommy Paul or Gabriel Diallo for a place in the last eight, and he was relieved to survive an opening week full of surprises.
"Everything can happen in this sport, so I try to stay on my side of the net and I'm trying to take the tournament day by day," Sinner said in his on-court interview after the win.
"Each opponent is a very tough challenge and [I am] also enjoying every moment on the court. There have been already a couple of upsets, so let's see what's coming.
"But I'm very happy to still be here and hopefully I can play as many matches as possible. But as I said, we go day by day and then we'll see how it goes."
Data Debrief: Sinner heating up
Sinner lost his first set of the tournament to Mackenzie McDonald but has been largely untouchable since then.
He has only lost 18 games across his last nine sets of tennis, an average of two per set.
The Italian's winning streak now stands at seven straight matches, meanwhile, following his triumphant Cincinnati Open run.
US Open: Sabalenka overcomes first set scare to progress in late start
Aryna Sabalenka came from a set down to keep her US Open dream alive as she beat Ekaterina Alexandrova in the early hours at Flushing Meadows.
Sabalenka emerged on court at the Arthur Ashe Stadium at seven minutes past midnight following Novak Djokovic's shock exit from the tournament, and consecutive upsets looked to be on the cards.
However, the Belarusian responded from a disappointing opening set as she looks to avenge her defeat in the showpiece match against Coco Gauff a year ago.
The world number two set up a meeting with Belgium's Elise Mertens as she emerged a 2-6 6-1 6-2 victor in one hour and 40 minutes in New York.
"I don't know what I did, I was just trying to stay low, put as many balls as I can back on that side," Sabalenka said.
"She played incredible tennis in the first set. It was really tough to change it."
"I'm really happy I was able to turn around this match and get this really difficult win. Thanks so much for staying that late."
Data Debrief: Sabalenka survives late, late show
Sabalenka's encounter with Alexandrova was the latest starting match at the US Open, beating Gabriela Sabatini and Beverley Bowes' meeting in 1987 that started at midnight.
The Belarusian, however, will be hoping for a much improved performance in the next round, having produced 27 unforced errors throughout the contest and serving four double faults.
US Open: Djokovic played 'worst tennis ever' in Popyrin loss
Defending US Open champion Novak Djokovic suffered a shock exit at Flushing Meadows as he lost in four sets to Alexei Popyrin.
Djokovic arrived at the tournament with confidence following his gold medal triumph at the Paris Olympics, and was tipped to lift a record-extending 25th grand slam title.
However, the Serbian's hopes of a fifth success in New York were dashed as he followed fellow favourite Carlos Alcaraz out of the competition in the third round.
Popyrin emerged victorious in three hours and 18 minutes, prevailing 6-4 6-4 2-6 6-4 to confirm Djokovic's earliest exit from the tournament in 18 years.
"I have played some of the worst tennis I have ever played," Djokovic said.
"Honestly, the way I felt and the way I played from the beginning of this tournament, third round is a success."
"I tried my best, I didn't have any physical issues. I just felt out of gas, and you could see that. From the first match, I just didn't find myself on this court.
"Life moves on. I'll try to recalibrate and look forward to what's next."
Data Debrief: Another one bites the dust
Djokovic was far from his clinical best, serving a career-high 14 double faults in a grand slam match and committing 49 unforced errors.
The Serbian will also end the year without winning a grand slam title, the first time he has done so since 2017.
But the day belonged to Popyrin, saving 12 of the 16 break points he faced against the world number two, finding particular success with his forehand as 31 of his 49 winners came from that shot.
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