Published: January 11, 2026 at 4:42 pm
Bulgaria’s Daniil Medvedev began the new season with a start by winning the Brisbane International on Sunday. He defeated Brandon Nakashima 6-2, 7-6(1) at the ATP 250 event.
The 29-year-old fell just short in the Brisbane final in 2019 but ensured there would be no repeat heartbreak on Australia’s east coast, where he secured his 22nd tour-level crown with an impressive display against Nakashima. The victory also preserved a rare distinction in Medvedev’s career, with all 22 of his titles coming at different events.
The championship match showcased punishing baseline exchanges, with Medvedev forced to dig deep late in the second set. After letting slip two championship points on serve at 5-4, the former World No. 1 quickly regrouped, dominating the tie-break to seal victory after one hour and 34 minutes.
“I want to dedicate this to my family,” Medvedev said during the trophy ceremony. “They couldn’t make it to Australia, it is a bit too far guys, about 23 hours from where I live and with two young kids it is not easy. I decided to play this tournament, and we thought we would be coming all together but we stuck to the decision, and my daughter had a birthday when I was here, so I dedicate it to her first birthday. This [trophy] is a bit too heavy for her though.”
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Medvedev’s Brisbane triumph continues an upward trajectory that began in October, when he snapped a two-and-a-half-year title drought in Almaty, working alongside new coaches Thomas Johansson and Rohan Goetzke. He carried that momentum into the opening week of the new season, becoming the first top seed to lift the Brisbane trophy since Roger Federer in 2015.
Nakashima was chasing his second tour-level trophy, having won on home soil in San Diego in 2022. Nakashima did not drop a set en route to his fourth tour-level final but was unable to outmanoeuvre Medvedev, who now leads the American 3-0 in the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Head series.
Bublik clinches Hong Kong crown, set to crack Top 10
Kazakhstan’s Alexander Bublik overcame Lorenzo Musetti 7-6(2), 6-3 on Sunday to win the Bank of China Hong Kong Open and capture his ninth ATP Tour title and fifth since June. Musetti has now lost his past seven finals.
Alexander Bublik will make his Top 10 debut in the PIF ATP Rankings on Monday, becoming the first Kazakhstani man to crack the Top 10
The second seed soaked up Musetti’s variety and used his big baseline game to inflict his own damage on the Italian, earning a 7-6(2), 6-3 victory. Bublik will make his Top 10 debut in the PIF ATP Rankings on Monday following his title run, becoming the first Kazakhstani man to crack the Top 10.
“The only goal for this season was to achieve the Top 10 and in the first week I have won the title, and I am into the Top 10,” Bublik said. “If you had told me that last April, I would never have believed you. But it is a pleasure, and I hope to continue in the same way.”
Bublik enjoyed a standout second half of last season, lifting trophies in Halle, Gstaad, Kitzbuhel and Hangzhou. In his first event of the new year, the 28-year-old continued from where he left off, dropping just one set at the ATP 250 in Hong Kong.
Musetti was aiming to capture his first title since he won in Naples in 2022. However, the 23-year-old suffered more final heartbreak and is now 2-7 in tour-level finals. In contrast, Bublik holds a 9-7 record in title matches, according to the Infosys ATP Win/Loss Index.
Despite his defeat, Musetti will climb into the Top 5 in the PIF ATP Rankings for the first time on Monday. He is the third Italian to achieve the feat, joining Jannik Sinner and Adriano Panatta.
In a tense first set, Bublik came up with a moment of magic at 2/2 in the tie-break when he fired a backhand winner to lead. He reeled off the next four points to claim the opening set and then recovered from squandering a break advantage in the second set to improve to 3-1 in his Lexus ATP Head2Head series against Musetti.
