Daniil Medvedev will face Brandon Nakashima in the final of the Brisbane International, having gone second outright for the most ATP showpiece appearances among active players.

Medvedev, who lost the 2019 final in Brisbane and is the top seed for this year's event as he builds towards the Australian Open, beat Alex Michelsen 6-4 6-2 on Saturday.

The Russian's performance was far from perfect as he committed 27 unforced errors, with Michelsen also inconsistent as he racked up 26.

But Medvedev saved seven of the eight break points he gave up while converting four of his eight, getting over the line in an hour and 44 minutes.

"It was not easy at all. The score doesn't completely reflect the match," the former US Open champion said afterwards.

"But I'm happy that in the most important moments, I managed to be better than Alex. That's what you have to do to win the match."

Job done 

No.1 seed @DaniilMedwed defeats Michelsen 6-4, 6-2 to reach his 41st tour-level final.@BrisbaneTennis | #BrisbaneTennis pic.twitter.com/4fSEC3nWld

— ATP Tour (@atptour) January 10, 2026

Nakashima also secured his final spot in straight sets, overcoming fellow American Aleksandar Kovacevic 7-6 (7-4) 6-4 earlier on Saturday.

He will appear in his first ATP Tour final since the 2022 San Diego Open, where he beat Marcos Giron in straight sets.

"Aleks and I are actually really good friends, we practiced a lot the past month, so it's great to see him playing well at these tournaments," Nakashima said after his semi-final. 

"For me, I'm really happy with the level I played today and I'm excited to keep playing here in Brisbane."

Data Debrief: Only Djokovic ahead of Medvedev

Medvedev will now feature in his 41st ATP Tour-level final, breaking his tie with Alexander Zverev (40) for the joint second-most among active players.

Only Novak Djokovic has appeared in more, though he is way out in front with 144. 

Across Medvedev's first 40 finals, he holds a 21-19 record, while he is 2-0 in the head-to-head with upcoming opponent Nakashima.