Daniil Medvedev was disqualified from his semi-final match against Novak Djokovic at the China Open on Monday night after accidentally striking a spectator with a ball. As a result, Australia’s Alex de Minaur will face Djokovic in the tournament final, following Hubert Hurkacz's retirement during their semi-final match.
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The incident occurred when Medvedev, serving at 7-5, 5-3 in Djokovic's favor, hit the ball into the stands in frustration after a volley by Djokovic. The ball bounced off the advertising boards, and Medvedev inadvertently struck a spectator in the front row, who was later seen leaving the arena with a hand over his left eye. Medvedev expressed regret for the situation, stating, "I feel terribly sorry for him actually and I just hope he’s OK. Hopefully, I can meet him and make up for it somehow."
After the incident, Medvedev apologized and showed remorse, saying, "When I saw the result, I felt horrible. The most important thing is I hope that he’s OK because you never know with these types of situations." He did not contest the disqualification when the chair umpire and tournament supervisor approached him.
Djokovic, who extended his perfect record at the China Open to 33-0, reflected on the incident by saying, "A bit of a shock, to be honest. I honestly didn’t see what happened. I hope that person is not badly injured. On the other hand, I also feel sorry for Daniil, because I know exactly how he feels to be disqualified in a big match. I am sure that Daniil didn’t want to do this intentionally. It just happens."
This marks Djokovic's first tournament outside the top 10 since 2015, with his current ranking at No. 11. He is returning to competition after a first-round exit from the US Open and recently defeated top-seeded Alexander Zverev in the quarter-finals.
De Minaur was leading Hurkacz 6-4, 3-2 when Hurkacz, struggling with an unclear injury, stopped the match. De Minaur is currently ranked No. 9 in the world.