Daniil Medvedev joked about a love-hate relationship with the Indian Wells Open court and his failure to create an entertaining final after his heavy defeat to Carlos Alcaraz.

Medvedev's winning streak was halted at 19 matches by the sensational Alcaraz, who claimed his third Masters 1000 title in style on Sunday.

Alcaraz won 6-3 6-2 in just 72 minutes to return to the summit of the ATP rankings, with Novak Djokovic having been unable to feature in the United States due to his COVID-19 vaccination status.

Medvedev had won three titles in a row – at the Rotterdam Open, Qatar Open and Dubai Tennis Championships, where he beat Djokovic – ahead of competing at Indian Wells, yet proved no match for the imperious Alcaraz, who he had beaten in their only previous meeting, at Wimbledon in 2021.

The Russian had to overcome several hurdles to reach the final, having rolled his ankle in his fourth-round win over Alexander Zverev while he also hurt his thumb in a quarter-final defeat of Alejandro Davidovich Fokina.

Yet despite the trials and tribulations, and his humbling loss in the final, Medvedev was in good spirits.

"I had a pretty toxic relationship here with the courts, a love-hate relationship," Medvedev chuckled. "So I'd like to thank the court!

"I only played on this court. I gave it a hard time so it gave me a hard time also. Rolled the ankle, the thumb... but it gave me the chance to finish the tournament.

"Thanks a lot to this court, I'll definitely be back.

"I really love this tournament, I'll be happy to come back many more years to come and hopefully I can start to love this court and Indian Wells together."

Addressing the crowd, Medvedev quipped: "Sorry I didn't make this final entertaining. I tried, I don't like to lose, but today was unfortunately pretty easy. I hope you still enjoyed it."

Alcaraz is one of only three players to hold a 100 per cent record in multiple ATP Masters 1000 finals, having now won in the finals of the Miami Open, Indian Wells Open and Madrid Open without dropping a set.

"I'd like to congratulate Carlos," said Medvedev. "You already have amazing achievements in your career and I'm sure many more to come.

"Today's one more of them, winning Indian Wells. I also dream of it – maybe next time you'll give me the chance!

"Congrats to you and your team. You're probably the most respectful player on Tour, you probably say hi to 300 people a day. I've rarely seen it!"

Alcaraz returned the plaudits, telling Medvedev he serves as an inspiration to be "better on the court and off the court".

"It has been a really amazing run here, such an amazing experience," the 19-year-old added.

When asked if he had played a near perfect match, Alcaraz told Amazon Prime: "Yes, probably. I played really, really well.

"I made no tactical mistakes, which is really important against Daniil. I would say I was perfect in that way.

"I'm really happy with the way I played, the trophy and of course to be world number one."

While Alcaraz will return to the top of the world on Monday, compatriot and idol Rafael Nadal is set to drop out of the top 10 for the first time since April 2005.

Carlos Alcaraz reclaimed the world number one ranking after dominating the in-form Daniil Medvedev to lift the Indian Wells Open title for the first time on Sunday.

Medvedev came into the decider with 19 straight ATP Tour wins, but Alcaraz made light work of the Russian, winning 6-3 6-2 in 72 minutes.

Alcaraz's triumph means he has three Masters titles from three finals, not dropping a set in any, while it ensured he returns to the rankings' summit ahead of 2023 Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic, who did not participate at Indian Wells.

The 2022 US Open champion has won two of three events since returning after three months out with abdominal and hamstring injuries that forced him to miss the Australian Open.

Alcaraz had labelled Medvedev the "best player right now" in the lead-up to the match, but was on top immediately, opening up a 3-0 lead as he hit 10 winners to the Russian's two in the first frame.

The Spaniard's dominance continued, winning the first 10 points of the second set, taking a 4-0 lead before prevailing with his second match point.

Alcaraz finished with 19-4 edge in the winner count, while Medvedev did not manage one ace for the match, marking the first time that has occurred since February 2020 against Gilles Simon in Marseille.

Medvedev had won in Rotterdam, Doha and Dubai recently and was gunning to be the first man to win four titles in five weeks since Andy Murray in 2016, but was completely outclassed by the 19-year-old.

Carlos Alcaraz is eagerly anticipating an Indian Wells Open final against "the best tennis player in the world" Daniil Medvedev and expects a long-lasting rivalry with downed opponent Jannik Sinner.

Spaniard Alcaraz defeated Italian Sinner 7-6 (7-4) 6-3 in California to reach his first Indian Wells final and move within one win of a return to the top of the ATP World Rankings.

Standing in his way is the in-form Medvedev, who owns a 19-match unbeaten run and has won three straight titles.

The two have only met once competitively, with Medvedev winning in straight sets at Wimbledon in 2021 and Alcaraz always wants to challenge himself against the elite on tour.

"I really want to play against the best tennis player in the world," Alcaraz said. 

"I always say that if you want to be the best, you have to beat the best, and I would say that Daniil is the best player right now, amazing winning streak.

"For me, it's going to be a really difficult challenge but I'm really prepared for that. I will summon my best tomorrow in the final."

Against Sinner, Alcaraz overcame an opponent with whom he is developing quite the budding rivalry.

It was their fifth career showdown and the first time they had met since Alcaraz won a marathon US Open quarter-final, a match that finished at 2.50am local time – the latest ending at the New York major.

"I would say we're going to have a great rivalry over the years. We are playing in the best tournaments in the world. It's not over here. We are going to play a lot of great matches," Alcaraz added.

"All I can say is I'm really happy with my first final here in Indian Wells.

"Playing against Jannik is never easy. I had to overcome a little bit of problems. I had set point down. 

"I knew that I had to increase my level to [beat] Jannik. It was a really close first set. In the second set I put out all the nerves and played more relaxed. I think it was the key of everything."

Medvedev will also play in his first Indian Wells final after defeating Frances Tiafoe 7-5 7-6 (7-4) in the other semi-final.

Medvedev has won in Rotterdam, Doha and Dubai and will be the first man to win four titles in five weeks since Andy Murray in 2016 if he can down Alcaraz.

Against Tiafoe, the Russian put in a great showing but let slip seven match points and was broken twice when serving for the match.

"It was crazy at the end," said Medvedev. "I got super tight. I would say that [after] 6-5, 40-0, I think I got tight at deuce when I was like, 'Oh my god, that's a lot of opportunities missed, this could go not well for me'. 

"So, I got really tight, [but] I still managed to continue playing good. The ace [on match point] was a relief, I’m just really happy that I managed not to lose this match."

Carlos Alcaraz qualified for his third final from three events this season and moved within one win of re-claiming the world number one ranking after beating Jannik Sinner in the Indian Wells Open semi-finals on Saturday.

The 2022 US Open champion triumphed 7-6 (7-4) 6-3 over the Italian 11th seed in one hour and 54 minutes.

Alcaraz is into his maiden Indian Wells final, having lost last year's semi-final to Rafael Nadal, while it is his third career Masters final.

The Spaniard will re-claim the top rank from Novak Djokovic with victory in the decider where he will face in-form fifth seed and 2021 US Open winner Daniil Medvedev who beat Frances Tiafoe 7-5 7-6 (7-4) on Saturday in 108 minutes.

Alcaraz had missed three months due to abdominal and hamstring injuries but continued his excellent return in Indian Wells, after winning the Argentina Open and making the Rio Open decider last month.

The top seed hit 26-14 winners against Sinner, including 17 on his forehand, while he capitalised on the Italian's 50 per cent first-serve percentage, attacking his second serve and converting two of six break points.

Medvedev earned a berth in his maiden Indian Wells decider with his triumph over 14th seed Tiafoe extending his winning streak to 19 games.

The Russian is into an ATP Tour-best fourth final for the season, following victories at the Dubai Tennis Championships, Qatar Open and Rotterdam Open in February.

While Alcaraz is within one victory of the number one ranking, Medvedev can become the first male since Andy Murray in 2016 to win four titles in five weeks.

Medvedev even let slip seven match points against Tiafoe and was broken twice when serving for the match at 5-4 and 6-5 before converting his first match point in the tie-break.

The world number six has maintained his top form despite rolling his ankle in his fourth-round win over Alexander Zverev, showing no signs of injury since.

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.

Top seed Carlos Alcaraz moved into the Indian Wells Open quarter-finals after Jack Draper retired down 6-2 2-0 due to an abdominal injury in their last-16 clash on Tuesday.

Alcaraz was in control, winning the first set in 36 minutes before racing to a 2-0 lead inside 10 minutes before the Briton withdrew. Draper had battled the injury in the latter stages of Monday's win over Andy Murray.

Despite that, the Spaniard looked in good touch, setting up a quarter-final meeting with eighth seed Felix Auger-Aliassime, who has a 3-0 head-to-head record against him.

"I felt the ball really well. I'm really happy with that part," Alcaraz said. "I would say I returned well, I hit great shots. I finished the match with confidence in my shots, to come into the next round with more confidence."

Auger-Aliassime saved six match points in a dramatic triumph over 17th seed Tommy Paul to reach the last eight, winning 3-6 6-3 7-6 (8-6) in two hours and 48 minutes.

The Canadian trailed 0-40 on serve at 5-6 in the deciding set before winning the next five points. He repeated that feat, down 3-6 in the tie-break, capitalising on his first match point. Auger-Aliassime hit 31 winners for the match, along with 51 unforced errors.

Fifth seed Daniil Medvedev fought back from a set down and a rolled ankle to progress past Alexander Zverev 6-7 (5-7) 7-6 (7-5) 7-5 in three hours and 10 minutes.

Medvedev rolled his ankle in the sixth game of the second set, going down in pain but played on, in his longest-ever three-set match. The victory is the Russian's 17th in a row. Zverev committed 50 unforced errors across the match.

The Russian will take on Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the last eight, with the Spaniard winning 6-3 6-4 over Chilean qualifier Cristian Garin.

Jannik Sinner cruised past Stanislas Wawrinka 6-1 6-4 in one hour and 39 minutes to move into the last eight where he will face reigning champion Taylor Fritz. The American won 6-4 6-3 over Hungary's Martin Fucsovics in one hour and 41 minutes.

British 10th seed Cameron Norrie will play 14th seed Frances Tiafoe in the other quarter-final, with the former winning 6-2 6-4 over the higher-ranked Andrey Rublev. Tiafoe won 6-4 6-4 over Alejandro Tabilo in 83 minutes for his 150th career win.

Daniil Medvedev expects to have a scan on his right ankle to see if he can continue his Indian Wells Masters campaign after injuring it in defeating Alexander Zverev.

Medvedev progressed to the quarter-finals for the first time at Indian Wells by coming from behind to defeat Zverev in three sets.

The 6-7 (5-7) 7-6 (7-5) 7-5 victory looked unlikely in the second set, when Medvedev hit the deck in obvious pain after turning his ankle.

It was subsequently taped by a physio, with Medvedev then coming through in three hours and 16 minutes, marking the longest three-set match of his career.

Medvedev has now won 17 matches in a row and is scheduled to face Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the last eight.

But it is not yet clear whether he will be fit to play that match.

Speaking after the win over Zverev, Medvedev said: "When I twisted it, I thought I was going to stand up fine, then the pain started going fast, so I thought, 'oh no, that's not a good sign'.

"So, I honestly thought maybe one of the ligaments is a little bit injured, so I thought I'm not going to be able to play.

"That's probably one of the first times in my life where a physio taped my ankle, so I decided to give it a try, and it was very surprising. It was much easier to move and to run than to walk. When I was walking, I was limping, and then I was running fine.

"I can understand how frustrating it is for the opponent, but I was not faking it. It was tougher for me to walk.

"When the adrenaline goes down, the body cools down, it's going to be pretty painful, and I'm going to probably do a scan, see what it is and if I can continue to play."

Two of the Indian Wells Masters' top-three seeds have failed to reach the final 16 after Casper Ruud fell 6-4 7-6 (7-2) at the hands of Cristian Garin on Sunday.

Ruud, the third seed, joined second seed Stefanos Tsitsipas with an early exit after a timid display, with just 17 winners to go with 17 unforced errors against Chile's Garin.

Meanwhile, Garin took his opportunity against the world number four with both hands, rattling off 39 winners with 24 unforced errors as he made the decision to take the match on and not die wondering.

Garin, who already defeated 29th seed Yoshihito Nishioka in the second round, will meet his third seeded opponent in a row in the quarter-final when he takes on Spain's 23rd seed Alejandro Davidovich Fokina.

Davidovich Fokina eliminated 13th seed Karen Khachanov 6-3 1-6 6-4, but it was still a strong day for the Russians as top hopefuls Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev advanced.

Medvedev, the fifth seed, was tested in his 6-2 3-6 6-1 victory over Belarus' Ilya Ivashka, while sixth seed Rublev saw off France's Ugo Humbert 7-5 6-3 without much issue.

Waiting for Rublev in the quarter-final is Briton Cameron Norrie after his 6-7 (5-7) 7-5 6-2 battle against Taro Daniel, while Alexander Zverev beat Emil Ruusuvuori 7-5 1-6 7-5 to book a tantalising clash with Medvedev.

In a poor day for the Australians, Jason Kubler went down 6-3 6-2 against 14th seed Frances Tiafoe, and Jordan Thompson could not follow up his incredible upset against Tsitsipas, falling 6-3 7-6 (8-6) to Chile's Alejandro Tabilo.

World number three Stefanos Tsitsipas has left the Indian Wells Masters without a win after a shock 7-6 (7-0) 4-6 7-6 (7-5) loss to Jordan Thompson on Friday.

Tsitsipas, the second seed with Novak Djokovic not present, received a bye through to the second round, and he showed some rust with three double faults in the opening set. 

Thompson capitalised, with an incredible 21 winners to only two unforced errors in the first set, and he closed it out with 15 winners and four unforced errors in the deciding frame for the biggest win of his career.

The Australian will now meet Chile's Alejandro Tabilo in the third round after he upset 32nd seed Maxime Cressy in a gruelling 7-6 (7-3) 7-6 (15-13) triumph.

Meanwhile, it was smooth sailing for third seed Casper Ruud in his 6-2 6-3 victory over Diego Schwartzman, and a similar story for fifth seed Daniil Medvedev in his 6-4 6-3 result against Brandon Nakashima.

Alexander Zverev, the 12th seed, had no issues in his 6-3 6-1 domination of Pedro Cachin in 77 minutes, and 13th seed Karen Khachanov also took exactly 77 minutes to see off Oscar Otte 6-3 6-3.

England's 10th seed Cameron Norrie breezed past Tung-lin Wu 6-2 6-4, while Italy's 20th seed Matteo Berrettini suffered an early 7-6 (7-5) 0-6 6-3 exit at the hands of Japan's Taro Daniel.

In the late window, after a lengthy weather delay, 14th seed Frances Tiafoe won his all-American showdown against Marcos Giron 6-2 6-2.

Daniil Medvedev landed a third title in three weeks by swatting aside fellow Russian Andrey Rublev in the Dubai Tennis Championships final.

Former world number one Medvedev won 6-2 6-2 in an hour and eight minutes, adding to recent victories in Rotterdam and Doha as he extended his winning streak to 14 matches.

It gave him a tour-leading 19th match win of the season, edging ahead of Britain's Cameron Norrie, and means Medvedev will vault above Rublev to reach sixth in the new ATP rankings.

Appearing in his 30th tour-level final, Medvedev picked up his 18th career title and improved his head-to-head advantage to 5-2 against his compatriot.

He broke serve in the first and seventh games to sweep through the opening set, serving out to love to clinch it, and Rublev, who was the defending champion, offered no greater resistance in the second.

After beating Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals, this was supremely clinical from Medvedev, setting him up for tilts at the Masters 1000 events in Indian Wells and Miami over the coming weeks.

"It's amazing," said Medvedev in an on-court interview, "because the start of the year was not perfect."

He lost in round three of the Australian Open to Sebastian Korda, but has put that January jolt firmly behind him.

"In tennis, when you don't win tournaments, you are always doubting, no matter what happens in practice," Medvedev said. "So I was doubting a lot and now it just feels better. I was really happy with these three weeks and I'm looking forward to the next ones.

"Sometimes you feel you're doing all the right shots and you're losing matches, and sometimes you kind of don't even think, just go it, go for some crazy stuff. A lot of shots this tournament were landing which were maybe not supposed to be, and when confidence is going sometimes that helps a lot."

Medvedev's win makes him the third player in the last two years to land three titles in as many weeks, the ATP said, after Casper Ruud in July 2021 and Felix Auger-Aliassime.in October 2022.

Daniil Medvedev denied Novak Djokovic a 21st consecutive win to set up an all-Russian final against Andrey Rublev at the Dubai Tennis Championships.

Djokovic had started 2023 by coming out on top in all 15 of his matches and winning the Australian Open, with his overall winning streak standing at 20 games.

But Medvedev ended the world number one's perfect start to the year with a superb display to take a 6-4 6-4 triumph on Friday.

The 27-year-old, who himself made it 13 consecutive wins, broke Djokovic twice on the way to taking the opening set.

Medvedev's high standard of play continued in the second, breaking Djokovic in the first game before holding in all five of his service games to secure a straight-sets victory.

"When you play against Novak you just have to play your best," Medvedev said after the win. "Kind of hope he doesn't play his best on the day because when he plays his best, well he has 22 grand slams, so even if you play your best, it is going to be tough, not sure you win.

"I managed to play a higher level than him today. In the second set I didn't face one break point, but there were so many 30-30 games. But I managed to stay composed and I am happy to be in the final tomorrow."

His win means he will face countryman Rublev in the final after the reigning champion kept his hopes of retaining the title alive with a 6-3 7-6 (11-9) success over Alexander Zverev.

Rublev had never previously won a match or set against Zverev in five previous meetings, but won three of the German's service games in the opener to go a set ahead.

The second seed was out-aced nine to two in the second set but managed to force a tie-break, going on to survive a set point before eventually securing the win on his sixth match point.

Rublev will look to join Roger Federer and Djokovic as only the third repeat champion at the tournament when he takes on Medvedev in Saturday's final.

The compatriots have met six times previously with Medvedev winning four of them, though Rublev has taken victory in their last two match-ups.

Novak Djokovic swept through to the quarter-finals of the Dubai Tennis Championships with ease on Wednesday, clinching a 6-2 6-3 win over Tallon Griekspoor.

The Serbian picked up his 19th consecutive victory midway through his record 378th week as world number one, settling his last-16 clash in straight sets.

Griekspoor, at a career-high position of 39th in the ATP rankings himself, proved no match for the 22-time grand slam winner, who dismantled him inside an hour and 22 minutes.

Djokovic had looked poised for a near-flawless performance, with a late lost service game at 5-1 up in the second set the only major blemish on his display.

"It's been a great evening for me," Djokovic said in his post-match interview. 

"Yesterday [against Tomas Machac], I really had to work hard to get a win. Tonight, right from the blocks, I think I was sharp. I definitely played better than I did last night.

"Maybe the last three or four games weren't the best to close the match, but I managed to find a good serve in the end.

"I'm very pleased with the performance and with the way I felt on the court, and hopefully things can go in the right direction for tomorrow."

Djokovic, who remains undefeated in 2023, is bidding to win the Dubai title for a sixth time, in what represents his first tournament since he won the Australian Open in January. 

Elsewhere, second and third seeds Andrey Rublev and Daniil Medvedev joined Djokovic in easing their way into the last eight.

The former was made to work by Spain's Alejandro Davidovich Fokina however, recovering for a 1-6 7-6 (8-6) 7-6 (7-3) win, while the latter saw off Alexander Bublik 6-4 6-2.

Fourth seed Felix Auger-Aliassime crashed out with a surprise 7-6 (7-4) 6-4 loss to Italy's Lorenzo Sonego, who is rewarded with a last-eight clash against seventh seed Alexander Zverev.

Novak Djokovic was made to work hard for his 18th consecutive victory, eventually putting away Tomas Machac in the first round of the Dubai Tennis Championships.

Djokovic, who is celebrating a record 378th week as world number one, had to rely on a third-set tie-break to finally get over the line, defeating his Czech opponent 6-3 3-6 7-6 (7-1) on Tuesday.

Machac is ranked 130th in the world, but caused Djokovic plenty of problems, earning 10 break points across the match, though he was only able to convert three.

Djokovic had a 4-1 lead in the deciding set before Machac fought back to force a tie-break, but the Australian Open champion ultimately had few problems at 6-6 as he won seven of the eight points played to clinch the win.

"Tomas certainly didn't play like the No. 130 in the world today," Djokovic said of his opponent. "He was giving me all kinds of trouble. But I guess when it mattered, I found another gear."

Djokovic, who is still undefeated in 2023, will face Tallon Griekspoor in the second round.

Elsewhere, fresh off two titles in as many weeks, third seed Daniil Medvedev eased past Matteo Arnaldi 6-4 6-2 to tee up a tie with Alexander Bublik next after his opponent Alexandar Lazarov retired hurt with Bublik leading 6-1 1-0.

Felix Auger-Aliassime defeated Maxime Cressy 7-6 (7-4) 3-6 6-3, but sixth seed Karen Khachanov is out after he was beaten 7-5 6-2 by Botic van de Zandschulp.

The Dutchman will take on Mikael Ymer in the second round after his 6-2 6-3 win against Francesco Passaro, while eighth seed Borna Coric and Dan Evans played just four games before the latter retired hurt.

Christopher O'Connell set up a match against Alexander Zverev in the next round after he overcame Emil Ruusuvuori 7-5 6-4.

Daniil Medvedev defied Andy Murray in the Qatar Open final to clinch a second title in seven days as the resurgent Russian won the battle of former world number ones.

In-form Medvedev scored a 6-4 6-4 victory on Saturday as he followed up last Sunday's title in Rotterdam with another trophy success.

Three-time grand slam winner Murray, set to jump 18 places to 52nd in the new rankings, had saved eight match points en route to the Doha final.

He pushed Medvedev hard but could not get the better of a player who will nudge up one spot to seventh in the rankings on Monday.

Murray came back from 0-40 in the opening game to force deuce, but he could not hold serve, and Medvedev soon broke again to lead 4-1.

But back came Murray, and the Briton had a break point to square up the opener at 4-4, only for Medvedev to cling on.

The second set also began with Murray dropping serve, but the 35-year-old levelled up at 3-3 with a backhand winner at the end of a terrific rally.

That raised his hopes of a full-scale fightback and a third title success at this event, plus a first tournament victory since 2019 in Antwerp, but Murray was broken from 40-0 in the ninth game, and that looked to end his hopes.

Murray saved a ninth match point of the week, albeit thanks to a double fault from his opponent, but the Scot could not do so for a 10th time, with a lob from Medvedev giving him a big win and the 17th tour-level title of his career.

Medvedev, the 2021 US Open champion, told Amazon Prime Video in a courtside interview: "It was a very tough match. I'm happy to win, today was a big fight.

"Both of us sometimes were playing bad, then suddenly both of us were playing amazing, and I'm happy to win.

"It was tough for Andy to put the ball through me many times. Now it has to continue, so I'm going to try for as long as I can."

Andy Murray will play Daniil Medvedev in the Qatar Open final after the 35-year-old came through yet another lengthy contest in his semi-final against Jiri Lehecka.

Murray appeared to be on course for a routine win after taking the first set 6-0, but was broken early in the second, eventually losing 6-3 to take him to a fourth three-set contest in four matches this week in Doha.

Lehecka should have won a hard-fought decider when 5-4 and 40-0 up on his own serve, but Murray's trademark resilience saw him break back despite facing five match points against, before ultimately winning the tie-break 8-6.

"I don't know how I managed to turn that match around," Murray said after the win. "In the 5-4 game, I think I played most of the match points really well. He missed one bad shot on the deuce point in that game at 5-4, but I played the match points pretty well.

"It's been an amazing start to the year. I have never experienced this in my whole career, like this many matches... It was sort of looking [like it might be a quicker match] for 30 minutes and then it turned into something completely different. Yeah, just amazing that I managed to turn that around."

Murray equalled Jimmy Connors for the fifth-most ATP hard court wins in the Open Era (489), and will play Medvedev in the final after the Russian's 6-4 7-6 (9-7) win against Felix Auger-Aliassime.

The Canadian had three set points in the second set tie-break to try and force a decider, but Medvedev showed determination to turn it around and seal his place against Murray in the final.

At the Open 13 Provence, number one seed Hubert Hurkacz is through to face Alexander Bublik in the semi-finals, with both also having to come through three-set matches in a deciding tie-break.

Hurkacz was finally able to overcome Mikael Ymer 6-3 3-6 7-6 (8-6) before Bublik defeated Grigor Dimitrov 7-5 3-6 7-6 (8-6).

Third seed Alex de Minaur was shocked by Benjamin Bonzi, who broke the world number 23 four times on his way to a 6-2 6-4 victory to avenge his third-round defeat at the Australian Open.

Bonzi will meet qualifier Arthur Fils in the final four after the French 18-year-old beat former world number three Stan Wawrinka 6-2 6-3 to reach a second straight tour-level semi-final.