Russian Daniil Medvedev, last year’s winner of the Internazionali BNL d’Italia, a clay court tournament in Rome of the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) Masters 1000 category with a prize fund of €7.9 million, continues to defend his title. After a victory in three sets over Serbian Hamad Medjedovic, he will face the 16th world-ranked American Tommy Paul, who he has not lost to in their three previous meetings.
The third-round match of the Rome “masters” with Hamad Medjedovic saw last year’s champion of the competition and fourth-ranked player in the world, Daniil Medvedev, starting as the favorite. This was mainly due to circumstances rather than the level of play the Russian has been demonstrating recently. The leader of the current season, Italian Jannik Sinner, along with former world number one Carlos Alcaraz from Spain, were unable to play at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia due to injuries. Serbian Novak Djokovic, who continues to hold the top spot in the rankings, lost to Chilean Alejandro Tabilo in the 1/16 finals match on Sunday. This surprise was preceded by an unfortunate incident. On Friday, after his victory in the opening match, Djokovic was hit on the head by a heavy water bottle that fell out of a fan’s open backpack as he was signing autographs in a narrow passage leading to the subterranean area. The famous tennis player, who has won six times on the courts of Foro Italico, had to be taken to the hospital for examination, and although nothing serious was found, he did not seem like himself in the match against the typical player ranked in the 32nd spot of the first hundred, playing passively and making numerous errors.
The fiasco of the world’s number one player was not the only surprise of the third round. Andrey Rublev was eliminated from the competition on Monday, losing to Frenchman Alexander Muller. Initially, there were no signs of an upset. In the first set, the Russian completely controlled the situation, but then things gradually turned in the other direction. His opponent, ranked 109th and having to qualify for the main draw, gradually adapted to Rublev’s aggressive tennis, while the Russian gradually decreased his first serve percentage and ultimately lost his game. In the end, 27-year-old Muller achieved the biggest victory of his career – 3:6, 6:3, 6:2 in 1 hour and 49 minutes, although Rublev’s defeat had an objective reason as well. After his impressive triumph a week ago at the Madrid “masters,” where he had to play despite a fever and a sore throat, the Russian spent two and a half days in the hospital and clearly arrived in Rome not in an ideal physical condition, which he will now have the opportunity to improve within the remaining two weeks before the start of Roland Garros.
Overall, the situation looks quite promising for Medvedev, although it will not be easy for him to capitalize on his chances. The match with the talented Medjedovic, who won the ATP’s youth year-end tournament last season, proved to be very challenging. The 20-year-old opponent, with a powerful first serve and a strong right-hand swing, was not afraid to take risks and gave Medvedev a tough battle. The outcome was decided in a tie-break in the first set, which ended in Medvedev’s favor. However, in the second set, Medjedovic completely took control, securing two unanswered breaks. But the third set, after Medvedev took a time-out, turned out to be successful. Calming down a bit, the Russian made a break in the fourth game, allowed Medjedovic to catch up, but ultimately sealed the victory – 7:6 (7:5), 2:6, 7:5, and now in the round of 16 Medvedev will face the 16th world-ranked American Tommy Paul, whom he has defeated in their three previous meetings.