Holger Rune solves the Daniil Medvedev riddle, makes first BNP Paribas Open final

Daniil Medvedev has had a knack for solving all his in-match riddles in recent years at the BNP Paribas Open, reaching the last two finals, but on Saturday a 21-year-old from Denmark had all the answers.

Holger Rune, a 21-year-old Dane who has risen as high as No. 4 in the world, played his best during the biggest points to sweep past Medvedev 7-5, 6-4 in the first BNP Paribas Open semifinal.

Rune preached patience during his win and the second-to-last point of the match was the perfect example. He and Medvedev engaging in a long rally with the score 30-30 on Rune’s serve. The point lasted at least 25 strokes and in the end it was the veteran Medvedev who flinched hitting a shot long.

On match point, Rune blasted a solid first serve in and Medvedev could only get a racket on it and hit a fluttering ball back that Rune put away, to clinch a trip to the finals, his fourth at the Masters 1000 level and first here.

“That was crazy,” a still-out-of-breath Rune told the crowd after the match. “At the end, there were some super long points and rallies and I had to stay patient and wait for the right ball which is difficult against Daniil who always plays incredible here. But, I don’t know, what a day and what an atmosphere.”

Rune’s win came in front of an almost full Stadium 1 crowd on a pitch-perfect weather day in Indian Wells.

Rune will face the winner of Saturday’s other semifinal between Carlos Alcaraz and Jack Draper in Sunday’s final. Rune has one Masters 1000 win his career, the 2002 Paris Masters.

He prevented Medvedev from being just the third man to play in three consecutive BNP Paribas Open finals (Federer did it twice, Djokovic did it once). He lost both of those finals to Carlos Alcaraz, who can also accomplish that feat with a win Saturday.

Rune, whose last name rhymes with tuna for those who love pronunciation, turned the tables on Medvedev who beat him in last year’s quarterfinals here by the same 7-5, 6-4 score.

His win ensures Sunday’s championship match will be a very young one. It will be the first time any Masters 1000 or Grand Slam event will pit two players born in the 2000s. He and Alcaraz were born in 2003 and Draper was born in 2001.

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Holger Rune solves Daniil Medvedev, makes first Indian Wells final