The triumphal procession of the Russian Daniil Medvedev on the world tennis courts has been going on for 19 matches. Just one step left to take Octopus on the way to the fourth title in a row.

But in the semi-finals of the Masters in the USA, our player had unexpected problems.

Hit below the belt

In the semi-finals of the prestigious Indian Wells tennis tournament, Russian tennis player Daniil Medvedev faced a serious test in the person of American Francis Tiafoe. The local tennis player went through all the previous opponents like a skating rink. He hasn’t lost a set in five matches. Before the match with Medvedev, Tiafoe beat Cameron Norrie, who knocked out Andrei Rublev from the fight for the title.

The beginning of the meeting turned out to be stubborn. For ten games, tennis players could not create a single break point. It already seemed that the first set would end in a tie-break, but Medvedev still took the 11th game on the serve of the American. And it happened in a dramatic fight. In the decisive draw, the cable turned out to be on the side of the Russian.

Naturally, the lost prank upset Francis. The American went on pause distressed. Near the net, he threw the ball remaining in his pocket with a racket. The tennis player did this without looking at the opposite side, which led to an unpleasant incident.

Russians unexpectedly appeared on the trajectory. The ball hit Daniil right in the groin, which gave him discomfort. But Medvedev showed generosity and only smiled. When the tennis players crossed, the Russian patted his opponent on the shoulder. Tiafoe, however, did not react to the incident in any way. Apparently, the emotions from the lost game took over.

Photo: © Julian Finney / Staff / Getty Images Sport / Gettyimages.ru

“This win makes me very happy”

In the next game, Medvedev took the first set. The second installment was also not without adventures. Daniil missed seven match points. First, in the ninth game, he failed to complete the meeting three times when the opponent served, and then missed four more match points on his own serve.

As a result, the winner had to be determined in a tie-break. Here the Russian tennis player has already mastered the nerves. This time it took him only one attempt to complete the meeting with a victory.

This win makes me very happy. Try to play a tie-break when you have just lost seven match points. I immediately managed to start well, making great shots and great draws,” Medvedev said after the victory.

Now Daniil is waiting for the fourth final in a row. Our tennis player will face Carlos Alcaraz. The young Spaniard is now in second place in the ATP rankings. In Indian Wells, he is seeded number one.