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Late-night Learner! Tien sinks Medvedev in Aussie Open thriller

19-year-old qualifier becomes second-youngest American man to reach R3 in Melbourne
January 16, 2025
Learner Tien celebrates the biggest win of his career over World No. 5 Daniil Medvedev at the Australian Open.
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Learner Tien celebrates the biggest win of his career over World No. 5 Daniil Medvedev at the Australian Open. By ATP Staff

American teen Learner Tien notched a major upset in the early hours of Friday morning, when he sunk three-time finalist Daniil Medvedev in a five-set thriller to seal his spot in the third round of the Australian Open.

Runner-up at last month's Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF in Jeddah, the 19-year-old qualifier dug deep for a 6-3, 7-6(4), 6-7(8), 1-6, 7-6(10-7) triumph over the fifth seed in four hours, 48 minutes, crossing the line at 2:54 a.m in Melbourne. Tien, the No. 121 in the PIF ATP Rankings, let slip a match point the third set, but crucially reeled off the last four points in the deciding-set tie-break to claim the biggest win of his career. 

"I was definitely hoping it wouldn't go to a fifth-set breaker, but I'm just happy to get a win,” said Tien. “I know I made it a lot harder than maybe it could have been... Losing the third was tough after playing for that long and having a match point. I didn't even get to touch the ball I don't think, it was an ace. So it was a little disappointing to see a fourth [set] after fighting back from a break down in the third.

"Honestly in the fourth set I just had to pee so bad, so I was trying to finish it up fairly quick. But I also wanted to start the fifth serving, so I scrapped that game at 0-5, and it all worked out."

Despite the gruelling nature of the battle with Medvedev, Tien managed to find an extra burst of energy in the final set, during which he struck 13 winners and converted each of the two break points he created, according to Infosys Stats. With his gutsy victory, the Californian became the second-youngest American man to reach the third round at the Australian Open after 18-year-old Pete Sampras in 1990.

As he continues his debut in the main draw at the Australian major, Tien will next face Frenchman Corentin Moutet, who earlier rallied past another American qualifier Mitchell Krueger 4-6, 6-4, 7-6(3), 6-4.

It All Adds Up

Tien’s consistent, methodical approach has often drawn parallels with that of Medvedev, and their maiden Lexus ATP Head2Head clash was destined to be nothing short of a tactical struggle. Yet it was the 2024 Next Gen ATP Finals presented PIF runner-up who took the game to Medvedev, rallying back from a break down in each of the first two sets to spark hopes of an upset.

Medvedev, bidding to reach the third round in Melbourne for a seventh consecutive year, squandered a break lead once more in the third set, but recovered in the tie-break, where he saved a match point on serve at 6/7 before racing clear in the fourth. 

It appeared as if Medvedev was going to complete an epic comeback when he held two serves at 7/6 in the final set tie-break, but Tien came up with some inspired shot-making to secure his maiden win over a Top 5 opponent. 

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