Down two sets against Fabian Marozsan at Australian Open 2026 on Friday afternoon, Daniil Medvedev happened to glance at the scoreboard.
It showed that Learner Tien won his match, meaning Medvedev would face the American once again at Melbourne Park if he rallied against Marozsan.
The three-time Melbourne Park finalist did, prompting the fourth instalment in the pair’s already riveting rivalry despite the small sample size.
“I kind of don’t like to play him, but he must hate to play me as well,” said Medvedev. “It’s long, brutal rallies” but Medvedev vowed to “enjoy it.”
“There’s going to be a lot of shot making, a lot of good defence from both of us, some passing shots, etcetera.”
MORE: AO 2026 men’s singles draw
Medvedev admitted that he underestimated the left-handed Californian 12 months ago in the second round of Australian Open 2025.
Back then, Tien was a qualifier competing in his maiden Australian Open. But he stunned Medvedev in a fifth-set tiebreak in nearly five hours, showing his mettle by recovering from a missed match point in the third set.
The classic ended at about 3am local time, with a famished Tien later treating himself to pizza.
Medvedev subsequently dipped in Grand Slams and overall – recovering after the US Open – as Tien kept climbing.
“I remember my leg was hurting really bad,” Tien, now the No.25 seed, reflected on Friday.
“My mind was in a million places, but mostly happy.”
Their two other meetings, in Beijing and Shanghai in back-to-back tournaments on the Asian swing, also went the distance.
A cramping Medvedev retired in Beijing after two-and-a-half hours before cramps surfaced in the rematch. Yet Medvedev overcame his distress, prevailing in three hours.
“We both don’t make it easy on our opponents. So, naturally, we’re not making it easy on each other,” said Tien, almost bundled out in the first round when he trailed fellow Californian Marcos Giron 2-1 in sets and by a break, 4-3, in the fourth.
Medvedev, a former No.1, said the 20-year-old could become a future No.1.