The possibility of an all-Russian final is just one match away, with Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev both reaching the semi-finals either side of the draw at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.
For example, at the end of last year I was super consistent, and even this year I’m trying to regain that. This tournament has been great so far Daniel Medvedev
Medvedev reached the last four for the third time after a comfortable 6-2 6-1 win over Jenson Brooksby.
In what is his fourth appearance at the ATP 500 event, the former world number 1 is coming off a poor season last year, but capped it off with improved performances which he has now maintained this year, including a run to the Brisbane final.
“There were moments in my career when I was better prepared,” Medvedev said when asked about his recent consistency, which allowed him to return to the top ten for the first time since June.
“Funnily enough, they say ‘Rookies are lucky’. It was more like this. Everything was new, I didn’t care…I just played the way I felt.”
“Now I have a lot more thoughts in my head, which sometimes can help me, but sometimes I have to get rid of them to play better. I still know that I can be consistent. For example, at the end of last year I was super consistent and this year I am trying to get that back again. This tournament has been great so far.”
(Photo by Noushad Thekkayil/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Rublev also maintained his impressive record in Dubai, getting past Arthur Rinderknech 6-2 6-4 to advance to his fifth semi-final at the ATP 500 event.
“I just tried to do my job,” Rublev said after his two-hour, 23-minute victory. “I tried to play my tennis and keep doing the things I was doing. As soon as I got the chance to play aggressively, I tried to go to the net, focus on my serve, serve hard and put pressure on his return, which wasn’t easy because he served super hard.”
Currently ranked 18th, Rublev lifted the trophy in 2022 and then reached the final in 2023. He came through the Frenchman to face Tallon Greekpoor, who in turn defeated sixth-seeded Jakub Mensik 6-3 3-6 6-2 to reach the semi-finals for the second time.
“I thought I started really, really well,” Greekpoor said. “I broke him with a good game on my part. I didn’t really have any problems. In the second set it changed a bit, I didn’t make as many first serves and he started to serve better. At the beginning of the third set I had to improve my game and serve better, which I really did. In the end I started to come back very well, so I’m very happy with the victory.”
Top seed Felix Auger Aliassime could prove a major stumbling block for Medvedev as the in-form Canadian eases past Jiri Lehecka 6-3 7-6(2) as he looks to improve on last year’s final run at the event.
Looking ahead to Friday’s semi-final, the 25-year-old Canadian said: “We have very different styles of play. I’m going to try to get forward, he’ll try to make me miss. We’ll see who gets the better of the game plan. He’s had the better of me… It took me seven or eight times to beat him.”
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