Daniil Medvedev rallied from a set down to defeat qualifier and fellow Russian Alexander Shevchenko 4-6, 6-1, 7-5 on Monday at the Mutua Madrid Open in Spain for his 300th career ATP victory.
Medvedev rebounded from a break down twice in the final set to pull off the victory in two hours, 43 minutes.
Medvedev was down 0-2 and 2-4 in the third set.
“I feel like I played pretty well in the second and third sets, and maybe the end of the first,” Medvedev said. “The thing about clay [is] usually it is tough for me to start matches for whatever reason. I need a lot of time to get used to everything that is happening on the court. The third set [I could] have been a bit better at crucial moments, or maybe a lot better. But finally I won, so that counts also.”
Medvedev next plays countryman Aslan Karatsev, a 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 winner over No. 16 seed Alex de Minaur of Australia.
Karatsev finished with 40 winners and converted 3 of 5 break points to advance.
Fourth-seeded Stefanos Tsitsipas also needed three sets to dispatch No. 25 Sebastian Baez 7-5, 3-6, 6-3 in a match that lasted two hours and 13 minutes.
Tsitsipas improved to 8-2 on clay this season.
“He made it very difficult for me. Honestly, it was demanding in a lot of ways. I had to bring out the best out of my game,” Tsitsipas said. “He wasn’t missing much. Of course, he’s someone that covers and runs around the court pretty well.”
Tsitsipas gets Spaniard Bernabe Zapata Miralles in the Round of 16. Miralles defeated Russian’s Roman Safiullin 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 to advance. Miralles advances to the fourth round of an ATP 1000 event for the first time in his career.
In other action, No. 8 Taylor Fritz needed just 90 minutes to oust Chilean Cristian Garin 6-1, 7-6 (4). However, ninth-seeded Frances Tiafoe dropped a 6-1, 7-6 (2) decision to Pedro Cachin of Argentina.
German Jan-Lennard Struff rallied to defeat Dusan Lajovic of Serbia 6-7 (2), 6-3, 6-3. And Zhizhen Zhang of China defeated Britain’s Cameron Norrie, the No. 11 seed, 2-6, 7-6 (2), 7-6 (2).
–Field Level Media
