Daniil Medvedev advances to Cincinnati semi-final with win over Taylor Fritz
Daniil Medvedev battled through some difficult times to defeat Taylor Fritz 7-6(1) 6-3 and secure a semifinal spot at the Western & Southern Open.
This first ever encounter for Taylor Fritz and Daniil Medvedev first was important for both players. The American is trying to break into the top 10 whilst the Russian is working towards staying at world number one.
Fritz demonstrated his resolve early in the match knowing a place in the final would ensure his entrance into the world’s top 10. Uncharacteristically it was Fritz who performed better in the lengthier rallies while Medvedev served better.
Fritz totalled six break points in the set but still lost it due to some below par play in the tiebreak. Four of his 15 unforced errors came in the first set decider.
Medvedev reached his first break point in Fritz’s opening service game of the second set after not seeing one in the opening set.
He didn’t utilize it, but he did use the second one in the same game, moving to a 3-0 lead.
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Unforced errors were a problem for Fritz as he had 8 more by the time he trailed in the 2nd set and Medvedev’s 13 aces didn’t help his cause either.
The match finished after one hour and 37 minutes with the Medvedev grabbing the 2nd set by 6 games to 3. He played an impressive game finishing with a service winner and notching up 18 aces and 32 winners in total.
Daniil Medvedev will now play either Stefanos Tsitsipas or John Isner for a place in the Cincinnati final.
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