Former World No:<\/b> Former World No.1 Novak Djokovic has advanced to the championship match at the China Open after Daniil Medvedev was defaulted from the pair\u2019s semifinal clash in Beijing.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The record six-time champion Djokovic was serving for the match at 7-5, 5-3, 15\/15 when a ball bounced off the back wall. Medvedev instinctively reacted and hit the ball, with it going into the crowd and hit a fan.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Now in his first ATP 500 championship match since he won Astana in 2022, Djokovic will take on Alex de Minaur in Tuesday\u2019s championship match. Djokovic leads the fifth-seeded Australian 3-1 in the pair\u2019s Lexus ATP head-to-head series.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cA bit of a shock, to be honest,\u201d Djokovic said. \u201cSorry for the person [who got hit]. I honestly didn\u2019t see what happened. I hope that person is not badly injured. On the other hand, I also feel sorry for Daniil, because I know exactly how he feels to be disqualified in a big match. I was disqualified at the 2020 US Open in similar circumstances. I am sure that Daniil didn\u2019t want to do this intentionally. It just happens.\"<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Prior to being defaulted, Medvedev and Djokovic had played out an absorbing semifinal encounter on Beijing\u2019s stadium court across two hours and 29 minutes. With last week's Hangzhou champion Medvedev playing full of confidence in pursuit of his eighth consecutive tour-level win, Djokovic rallied from a break down to claim the opening set, breaking his opponent\u2019s serve twice in the second to move to the brink of victory.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cI was three points away from the win,\" Djokovic, who is 33-0 in Beijing, was quoted as saying by the ATP Tour. \"It was a gruelling battle, and I definitely didn\u2019t want [a] third set. It was looking like that. I don\u2019t know how many break points I saved; it was crazy. It\u2019s always a big battle with Daniil, and it\u2019s so hard to play him when he\u2019s feeling the ball well in slower conditions with a big serve. But we move on.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Having previously defeated top seed Alexander Zverev in a quarterfinal epic in Beijing, Djokovic is now one win away from his 102nd tour-level title. That would move him within one of Roger Federer, who won 103 crowns, with Jimmy Connors (109 titles) the only other man to have won more.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Djokovic showcased some trademark elite baseline ball-striking despite at times appearing to struggle physically between points, just as he had in his previous two rounds against Buyunchaokete and Zverev. His ability to repeatedly escape trouble on serve against Medvedev was particularly remarkable: The 39-year-old saved 16 of 18 break points he faced, according to Infosys ATP Stats.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Having previously defeated top seed Alexander Zverev in a quarterfinal epic in Beijing, Djokovic is now one win away from his 102nd tour-level title. That would move him within one of Roger Federer, who won 103 crowns, with Jimmy Connors (109 titles) the only other man to have won more.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n\r\n
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