Tsitsipas stuns Nadal in five sets at Aus Open
MELBOURNE: Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas recovered from two sets down to stun Rafael Nadal in the Australian Open quarterfinals on Wednesday, ending his bid for a record 21st Grand Slam title. The Spanish world number two was on course for a comfortable victory before Tsitsipas turned the match around to prevail 3-6, 2-6, 7-6 (7/4), 6-4, 7-5 in a seismic upset.
Russian Daniil Medvedev outclassed friend and compatriot Andrey Rublev 7-5, 6-3, 6-2 in sweltering conditions at Melbourne Park to secure a spot in the semi-finals and extend his winning streak to 19 matches. The pair rose up through the ranks together, playing against each other on the junior circuit, and two weeks ago combined to hand Russia the ATP Cup title. At senior level Rublev has enjoyed little success against Medvedev and Wednesday marked a fourth consecutive straight sets defeat by the 2019 U.S. Open finalist.
Following his victory at a scorching Rod Laver Arena, Medvedev, at 25 two years Rublev’s senior, needed a massage on his left thigh before proceeding to his on-court interview and said he was cramping towards the end of a contest lasting two hours and five minutes.
Rublev hit plenty of heavy groundstrokes at the start but struggled to find a way past his opponent’s defence. After a midset trade of breaks, Medvedev took the opener with a break to love in the 12th game. The rallies grew longer as the match progressed and Rublev won a gruelling 43-shot rally in the sixth game, then slumped down beside his towel on the side of the court. Rublev held serve for 3-3 and had three breakpoint opportunities in the next game but was unable to convert. Medvedev sensed his opportunity, breaking for a 5-3 lead and then seeing out the second set.
With his energy sapped and frustrations growing there was no way back for Rublev in the third set as Medvedev jumped out to a 4-0 lead before sealing the contest with a forehand winner. “We had some unbelievable rallies, I’m one of the first players to make Andrey so tired ... It’s hard to play (a friend) but we’re all so competitive, just need to win, get to that Grand Slam semi-final,” Medvedev said.
“That was one of my best matches ... I beat him in three sets not even with a tiebreak so
I’m really happy.” Next up for the ATP Finals winner will be a lastfour meeting against Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece. Russian qualifier Aslan Karatsev will meet world No 1 Novak Djokovic in the other semi-final Thursday.
Barty crashes out
Top seed and home hope Ashleigh Barty’s Australian Open came to a halt in the quarter-finals, just as fans were cleared to return after an eerie, five-day coronavirus lockdown.
Barty had raised expectations of ending Australia’s 43-year wait for a home winner but her campaign was ended by Czech surprise package Karolina Muchova, who stunned the top seed 1-6, 6-3, 6-2. Muchova will face Jennifer Brady in the last four after the 22nd seed beat her fellow American and close friend Jessica Pegula 4-6, 6-2, 6-1.
Barty’s campaign ended in front of 15,000 vacant seats at Rod Laver Arena in a stunning upset by Czech 25th seed Muchova, who came from behind to reach her first Grand Slam semi-final. In hot conditions, Muchova looked on her way out after Barty raced through the opening set, but after a medical timeout she returned to dominate.