Sports · NEWS EXPLAINER
Medvedev rallies past Struff in first match after Beijing default
A 4–6, 6–4, 6–3 comeback puts the fifth seed into Shanghai’s third round, five days after his China Open disqualification.
Daniil Medvedev recovered from a set down to beat Jan-Lennard Struff 4–6, 6–4, 6–3 at the Shanghai Masters on Saturday, October 10. The second-round win was his first match since Monday’s disqualification in Beijing; a first-round bye meant Shanghai began for him against Struff.
A finished comeback, set by set
Struff’s 6–4 opening set left Medvedev needing to win the next two. Medvedev answered 6–4 in the second and 6–3 in the third: three completed sets, with no retirement or default deciding this result.
The set-by-set view matters here. Monday’s Beijing semifinal ended through disqualification; Saturday’s Shanghai match ended with Medvedev winning the deciding set on court.
The sixth game supplies the deciding-set opening
AFP reports that Medvedev served 21 aces and broke for a 4–2 lead in the third set. Its account identifies a backhand volley in that sixth game as part of the passage that moved him ahead.
The final 6–3 set shows that he carried the advantage to the finish. The ace total describes his serving across the match; it is not a count of break points or evidence that every service game was comfortable.
A repeat opponent after a very different week
SID’s report places this as Struff’s second defeat by Medvedev in eight days. Their Beijing meeting had ended 6–4, 6–3 in Medvedev’s favor, so Shanghai required an extra set and a recovery after losing the opener.
The intervening Beijing semifinal against Novak Djokovic ended when Medvedev hit a ball that struck a spectator. He said the incident was accidental and apologized, AP reports. Saturday’s victory came five days after that stoppage.
What Shanghai’s result settles
Medvedev has secured a place in the third round. A first-round bye followed by this second-round victory means he has won one match at this edition, not two. His fifth seeding is a tournament position, separate from a world ranking.
Saturday also brought a straightforward opening result for second seed Carlos Alcaraz, who beat Juan Manuel Cerundolo 6–3, 6–3. AFP timed that match at 66 minutes. The two scores show different routes through the same round; neither is a title or a semifinal result.
