Daniil Medvedev reached the semi-finals of the Shanghai Masters on Friday, beating Tommy Paul 6-3 1-6 6-3. His opponent on Saturday is Rafael Jodar, the 20-year-old Spaniard who came from a set down for the fourth match in a row to beat Casper Ruud — the first meeting between two players who are also fighting for the same place at the ATP Finals.
Medvedev regroups after losing his way
The fifth seed's win over the 15th-seeded American turned on one long game. In the first set, Medvedev saved seven break points in a marathon sixth game, then broke Paul when the American sent a ball long to take the set, according to Reuters. Paul responded by taking the second set 6-1 as Medvedev's level dropped, including two double faults in a key service game.
The Russian, a former Shanghai champion, steadied immediately in the decider, broke early to lead 2-0 and closed it out on his second match point after just over two hours. "I managed to regroup myself and serve better in the third and get the win, which is a great feeling," he said, as reported by the Associated Press.
A direct fight for Turin
Saturday's semi-final carries more than a place in the final. After Friday's quarter-finals, Medvedev sits just above Jodar in the live Race to Turin, with Jodar ninth — a position that currently qualifies for the ATP Finals because Jannik Sinner has ended his season injured. The winner will take a significant step towards one of the last places; see our full Race to Turin explainer.
Jodar and the Becker record
Jodar has made a habit of starting slowly in Shanghai: he lost the first set against Thiago Tirante, Jiri Lehecka, Botic van de Zandschulp and Ruud, and won all four matches. He is already the youngest semi-finalist in the tournament's history.
Two more wins would also rewrite a 41-year-old record. Jodar entered the top 100 on 30 March after qualifying for Miami. According to TennisTemple and Yahoo Sports, winning the title would lift him into the top 10 around 203 days later — faster than Boris Becker, who needed 210 days in 1985, the quickest rise from the top 100 to the top 10 on record.
An apology after a tense week
Jodar's week has not been without controversy. During his fourth-round win over van de Zandschulp, chair umpire Jimmy Pinoargote gave him a code violation for unsportsmanlike conduct after he swore at a ball kid who had not brought his towel, the Associated Press reported. After beating Ruud, Jodar owned up to it. "It was my mistake," he said, according to Ubitennis, adding that he "should have accepted the warning" and would learn from it.
The other semi-final features Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, so Spain could yet have two players in Sunday's final. Follow the semi-finals live on our tennis scores.
Sources
This article was written by TiebreakNews from the reporting below, checked against official results and rankings.
- Reuters (via Radio Shoma) — Medvedev sees off Paul to set up Shanghai semi with comeback king Jodar
- Associated Press (via KSAT) — Jodar beats Ruud to make Shanghai Masters history and set up semifinal against Medvedev
- TennisTemple — 203 days: Jodar can break a 41-year-old record by winning Shanghai
- Ubitennis — 'I couldn't control my emotions' – Rafael Jodar apologises for ball kid incident
- CP24 / Associated Press — Rising Spanish tennis star handed code violation for swearing at ballboy