Published on October 5, 2026
Daniil Medvedev was disqualified from his semi-final against Novak Djokovic at the China Open after hitting a ball into the stands that hit a spectator in the front row on Monday.
The spectator was helped out of the arena by placing a hand over his left eye.
Recommended Stories
list of 4 elementsend of list
Djokovic was serving for the match at 7-5, 5-3 when Medvedev slammed the ball into the stands in apparent frustration.
After a volley winner from Djokovic, the ball bounced off the advertising boards and back to Medvedev, who fired a backhand that sailed into the stands.
The affected spectator was helped to leave as Medvedev stood on the field and watched.
The chair umpire and tournament supervisor came down to the court to speak to Medvedev, who did not appear to make much of an argument for the disqualification. Medvedev then walked to the net and shook Djokovic’s hand.
The incident is reminiscent of when Djokovic was kicked out of the 2020 US Open for accidentally hitting a linesman in the throat with a ball.
“It’s a bit of a shock, to be honest,” Djokovic said. “Honestly, I didn’t see what happened. I hope this person is not seriously injured. On the other hand, I also feel sorry for Daniil, because I know exactly how he feels being disqualified in a big match. … I’m sure Daniil didn’t mean to do that intentionally. It just happens.”
Medvedev has a history of behavioral problems on the pitch. He was fined 6,000 euros ($7,000) for unsportsmanlike conduct after smashing his racket seven times during a 6-0, 6-0 loss to Matteo Berrettini at the Monte Carlo Masters earlier this year.
Djokovic extends his perfect record
Djokovic extended his perfect career record at the China Open to 33-0.
Aiming for a seventh China Open title in Tuesday’s final, Djokovic will face ninth-ranked Alex de Minaur, who advanced when Hubert Hurkacz withdrew due to an apparent injury midway through the second set of their semi-final.
This will be Djokovic’s second final of the year after losing to Carlos Alcaraz at the Australian Open.
With his ranking at 11th, it is the first time in eight years that Djokovic has played a tournament without appearing in the top 10. It is also his first tournament since an elimination in the first round of the US Open. The 39-year-old Serbian rallied to beat top seed Alexander Zverev in the quarterfinals on Sunday.
Against Medvedev, Djokovic was twice caught going over the time limit on the service clock. After initially receiving a warning, he then had his first serve withdrawn on a crucial break point midway through the second set. But Djokovic still won the point.
Medvedev won just two of 18 break points as the two former No. 1s traded one grueling rally after another.
The match lasted after 2 hours and 29 minutes when Medvedev was fouled.
“I was three points away from victory,” Djokovic said. “It’s always a big battle with Daniil, and it’s so difficult to play him when he feels the ball well in slower conditions with a big serve. But we move on.”
De Minaur was leading 6-4, 3-2 when Hurkacz – who was barely able to run for balls in the second set – stopped playing.
The nature of Hurkacz’s injury was not immediately clear.
In the third round of the women’s tournament, which ends on Sunday, six-time Grand Slam champion Iga Swiatek beat Donna Vekic 4-6, 7-6 (0), 6-2 and will next meet Iva Jovic, who beat Kamilla Rakhimova 6-1, 7-5.
Elina Svitolina beat Maria Sakkari 6-4, 7-5.
Later, Coco Gauff faced Sun Xinran, a 16-year-old Chinese wild card, who recently won the US Open junior title.
Rybakina withdraws from Wuhan
US Open champion Elena Rybakina has withdrawn from the upcoming Wuhan Open due to a foot injury.
On Saturday, Rybakina lost her first match at No. 1 when she was eliminated in Beijing by 118th-ranked Armenian Alina Charaeva in the second round.
“I will take some time to rest and recover,” Rybakina said, according to Wuhan Open organizers.
Charaeva extended her breakthrough by beating Sonay Kartal 6-4, 6-1 to reach the last 16.
Gn sports
