Fifth seed Daniil Medvedev brushed off an ankle concern and booked his spot in the Indian Wells Open semi-finals after a straight-sets win over Alejandro Davidovich Fokina on Wednesday.
The 2021 US Open champion triumphed 6-3 7-5 over the Spaniard in one hour and 44 minutes, securing his 18th straight victory.
Medvedev will face Frances Tiafoe in the semi-finals after the American beat Briton Cameron Norrie 6-4 6-4 in the other quarter-final in that half of the draw.
The Russian had suffered an ankle injury during Tuesday's last-16 win over Alexander Zverev but played on to clinch a hard-fought three-set win.
But Medvedev alleviated any injury concerns, although he required treatment on a bloody right thumb in the second set while escaping from 0-40 at 3-4.
"I'm actually happy the ankle didn't hurt much because when I warmed up, it was hurting pretty bad," Medvedev said post-match.
"I knew I was going to play, I knew I was going to try. But I couldn't move well on the warm-up. I tried to warm it up as long as possible, took one painkiller so that probably helped. I was actually feeling better and better during the match."
Medvedev raced to a 3-0 lead in the first set and never looked back, although Davidovich Fokina fought hard in the second frame but missed his big chance in the eighth game.
The pair both hit 24 winners for the match, but the Spaniard's 24 unforced errors compared to Medvedev's 12 was a key difference.
Tiafoe, who made last year's US Open last four, awaits after needing only one hour and 25 minutes to eliminate 2021 Indian Wells champion Norrie and reach his maiden ATP Masters 1000 semi-final.
Norrie had been on an eight-match winning run but the American hit 22 winners and only gave up nine unforced errors.
Innovative Invitational Amateur Tennis Classic set for June 12-17 at Liguanea Club
Amateur tennis will return to Jamaica with the start of the inaugural Innovative Invitational Amateur Tennis Classic at the Liguanea Club in Kingston, Jamaica.
The tournament, organized by Llockett McGregor, will take place from June 12-17 feature over 90 players in the following categories: Men’s Open, Men’s Class 2 & 3 and Ladies B.
“I am expecting a very competitive and exciting tournament,” McGregor said at the launch of the Classic on Tuesday. I want to say thank you to all the sponsors who have come on board including the National Commercial Bank, Sandals and Altamont Court to name a few. We’re still working on a few more,” he added.
McGregor, when asked about the motivation behind staging the tournament, said keeping amateurs interested in the sport is a priority.
“This is an amateur tournament. Amateur, in my way of putting it, is the machinery behind the sport. They are the ones who drive the sport behind the professionals and juniors. We have to keep them interested by way of putting on tournaments for them,” McGregor said.
“In addition to that, I am the pro at the Liguanea Club which is a private members club with over 600 members. We have one of the biggest clubs in Jamaica with over eight Tennis courts and we feel it is our duty to give back to the sport of Tennis by putting on these tournaments, not only for our members but for the Tennis population at large.”
Top technology retailer, Innovative Systems Limited, have signed on as main sponsors for the first three years.
“This is the start of a blossoming relationship between Innovative Systems and the Tennis fraternity,” said Garth Walker, Executive Chairman of Innovative Systems Limited.
“This Amateur Classic will form an additional event of the annual Tennis calendar for the next three years. The Innovative Systems team is excited about this tournament, as it provides an avenue for us to aid the development of the sport. Additionally, it gives us an opportunity to foster the growth of the talented athletes who will be showcasing their expertise at this tournament,” Walker added.
The tournament draw will be held on Thursday before action gets underway with first round matches beginning at 5:00pm on Monday.
Innovative Invitational Amateur Tennis Classic set for June 12-17 at Liguanea Club
Amateur tennis will return to Jamaica with the start of the inaugural Innovative Invitational Amateur Tennis Classic at the Liguanea Club in Kingston, Jamaica.
The tournament, organized by Llockett McGregor, will take place from June 12-17 feature over 90 players in the following categories: Men’s Open, Men’s Class 2 & 3 and Ladies B.
“I am expecting a very competitive and exciting tournament,” McGregor said at the launch of the Classic on Tuesday. I want to say thank you to all the sponsors who have come on board including the National Commercial Bank, Sandals and Altamont Court to name a few. We’re still working on a few more,” he added.
McGregor, when asked about the motivation behind staging the tournament, said keeping amateurs interested in the sport is a priority.
“This is an amateur tournament. Amateur, in my way of putting it, is the machinery behind the sport. They are the ones who drive the sport behind the professionals and juniors. We have to keep them interested by way of putting on tournaments for them,” McGregor said.
“In addition to that, I am the pro at the Liguanea Club which is a private members club with over 600 members. We have one of the biggest clubs in Jamaica with over eight Tennis courts and we feel it is our duty to give back to the sport of Tennis by putting on these tournaments, not only for our members but for the Tennis population at large.”
Top technology retailer, Innovative Systems Limited, have signed on as main sponsors for the first three years.
“This is the start of a blossoming relationship between Innovative Systems and the Tennis fraternity,” said Garth Walker, Executive Chairman of Innovative Systems Limited.
“This Amateur Classic will form an additional event of the annual Tennis calendar for the next three years. The Innovative Systems team is excited about this tournament, as it provides an avenue for us to aid the development of the sport. Additionally, it gives us an opportunity to foster the growth of the talented athletes who will be showcasing their expertise at this tournament,” Walker added.
The tournament draw will be held on Thursday before action gets underway with first round matches beginning at 5:00pm on Monday.
Novak Djokovic fights back to book place in French Open semi-finals
Novak Djokovic lost his first set of the French Open but battled back to defeat Karen Khachanov and move through to the semi-finals.
The third seed looked like he could be in trouble when he was pushed to a second-set tie-break after dropping the opener, but he won seven straight points and pulled away to win 4-6 7-6 (0) 6-2 6-4.
Djokovic said: “He was the better player for most of the first two sets. I was struggling to find my rhythm. I came into the match a bit sluggish, but I played a perfect tie-break and then played a couple of levels higher.
“It’s a big fight, it’s something that you expect, quarter-finals of a grand slam. You’re not going to have your victories handed over to you. I’m happy to overcome this big challenge.”
Djokovic struggled to deal with the power game of Russian Khachanov in the opening set and made some unexpected errors as he dropped serve in the fifth game.
Khachanov, who made the semi-finals at both the US Open and Australian Open, had another chance to break in the ninth game and, although Djokovic managed to hold this time, his opponent comfortably served out the set.
The momentum slowly began to switch in the second set as Djokovic, who was engaging in repeated dialogue with his support camp, began to apply some pressure to the Khachanov serve.
He did not manage to break but, not for the first time this fortnight, played a flawless tie-break and then benefited from a lucky netcord to win a long opening game of the third set on the Khachanov serve.
The only blip after that came with a loose game that saw him lose his break advantage at 4-3 in the fourth set, but Djokovic regained it straight away and served out the victory.
The Serbian is through to his 45th slam semi-final, one behind Roger Federer and seven adrift of Chris Evert’s all-time record, and now only two victories away from a record 23rd slam title.
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