Former champion Daniil Medvedev returned to the Rolex Shanghai Masters semi-finals for the third time on Friday to further boost his Nitto ATP Finals qualification chances.
In an engaging quarter-final clash with Tommy Paul, Medvedev recovered from a mid-match dip, raising his focus and overall level throughout the third set to earn a 6-3, 1-6, 6-3 victory in two hours and nine minutes.
The fifth seed Medvedev ground down Paul in a physically demanding deciding set, regularly coming out on top in the attritional baseline exchanges to improve to 5-1 in the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Head series. Medvedev also capitalised on a drop of level from the American, who made just 47 per cent of his first serves in the decider and committed 17 unforced errors.
"I think today I was a tiny bit off from time to time but the third set was great," Medvedev said. "Even the second set was 6-1, but I made him work and I was tired at the end of the set myself. I managed to regroup myself and serve better in the third and get the win, which is a great feeling."
Medvedev is the only former Shanghai champion left in the draw, having lifted the trophy in 2019. Into his third ATP Masters 1000 semi-final of the year, the 30-year-old is seeking his seventh title at the level this weekend, but first since 2023, when he ruled in Rome. He will next face 20-year-old Spaniard Rafael Jodar.
"He has a great game," Medvedev said on Jodar. "He hits very strong, so it is going to be fun to see it in real life, to get the feel. If I am playing well, I am tough to beat and that is what I am going to try to do."
Medvedev is enjoying an impressive Asian swing. The former World No. 1 lifted his third trophy of the season last month at the ATP 250 event in Hanghzou and is now 11-1 since arriving in the country four weeks ago, having also advance to the semi-finals in Beijing.
Medvedev’s latest victory has further boosted his Nitto ATP Finals qualification chances, with the former champion at the season finale up two spots to sixth in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin. Medvedev is on 3,420 points, 540 points clear of 10th-placed Alex de Minaur, who is just outside the qualification cut. Medvedev triumphed at the Nitto ATP Finals in 2021 but did not qualify last year, missing the event for the first time since 2018.
