Six appeal: Russian boy wonder Daniil Medvedev continues incredible run by reaching SIXTH final in a row in Shanghai

There are hot streaks, and then there’s the incredible run that Russian tennis ace Daniil Medvedev finds himself on.

The giant Russian 23-year-old booked his place in an incredible SIXTH consecutive tournament final as he edged out Greek youngster Stefanos Tsitsipas 7-6 7-5 in the pair’s semifinal at the Shanghai Masters on Saturday.

Third seed Medvedev set up a clash with Germany’s Alexander Zverev, seeded fifth, on Sunday – but also extended an incredible streak which began at the Washington Open at the start of August.

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Since then, the 6ft 6in Russian has reached the final stage at every even he has played at, picking up titles at the Cincinnati Masters and St. Petersburg Open along the way.

His streak also included an epic five-hour, five-set US Open final defeat to Rafael Nadal in what was Medvedev’s maiden appearance at that stage of a Grand Slam.

But rather than slowing down, Medvedev has continued to kick on to the end of the year – as shown by his form in China.  

“Making six [finals] in a row, including three Masters 1000’s and one Grand Slam, is something I could never dream of, to be honest,” Medvedev said.

“But I want to keep the momentum going and hope I can make it to seven or eight.”

Ahead of their final, Zverev - who overcame Italy's Matteo Berrettini in straigh sets in their semifinal - paid tribute to Medvedev, saying he was "probably the best player in the world right now." 

Medvedev has now reached nine finals in total this season – becoming just the seventh man to reach that number this century, alongside current legends Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, as well as former stars David Ferrer and Marat Safin.    

Overall, Medvedev stands at 58 victories and 17 defeats in matches this year, while he has racked up a world-leading 45 hard-court wins.

And while Nadal’s victory at the US Open extended the so-called ‘Big Three’s’ dominance and Grand Slams, Medvedev looks increasingly likely to be the man to crack that stranglehold at the top of the men’s game.

Medvedev is currently ranked fourth in the world, and has already booked his place at the year-ending ATP Finals in London.