De Minaur through to Washington semis, Medvedev upset
The No.7 seed let out an emotional roar after triumphing 6-4 6-4 against the local favourite at John A Harris Grandstand on Friday.
De Minaur dished out six aces in the win over the No.14 seed. He won 67 per cent of points on his first serve and 64 per cent on second.
The 26-year-old from Sydney faced a break point while serving for the match but then nailed a backhand volley to level the game, before advancing in 95 minutes.
De Minaur will now meet Frenchman Corentin Moutet for a place in the final, where Ben Shelton or the winner of No.1 seed Taylor Fritz and No.12 Alejandro Davidovich Fokina awaits.
Earlier, Moutet put paid to the hopes of No.8 seed Daniil Medvedev, winning 1-6 6-4 6-4.
Medvedev loves playing on hard courts and in particular the US Open and his loss was an upset with the grand slam just a month away.
He has reached six grand slam finals in his career - all on hard courts.
"Usually, this is the most important part of the season for me," Medvedev said after the loss.
"And this year, it's really important for me, because I didn't have the best year. I had a lot of time after Wimbledon, so I'm feeling ready and I feel in good shape."
No.4 seed Shelton eliminated No.6 Frances Tiafoe in an all American affair, winning 7-6 (7-2) 6-4.
Shelton hurled down nine aces to Tiafoe's eight in the closely fought contest.
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The Advertiser
11 hours ago
- The Advertiser
Popyrin power proves potent as Aussie ace prevails
Australia's Alexei Popyrin has won the battle of former champions to advance to the fourth round of the Canadian Open. Defending champ Popyrin, the 18th seed in Toronto, fought back to beat 10th-seeded Russian Daniil Medvedev 5-7 6-4 6-4 on Thursday (local time). It was a superb win for the Australian against the former world No.1 and 2021 US Open and Canadian Open champion in the lead-up to the year's final major on the hard courts at Flushing Meadows in New York. Popyrin, who stretched his unbeaten run in Canada to eight matches, was delighted to win, but thought he should have done it more easily. "I felt like I should have won that first set,'' said the Australian, who raced to an early 4-2 lead. "I was in the driver's seat. I felt like I was really comfortable out there, and then something happened. "I kind of let go and I started feeling my shots a little bit. When that happens, when you play a fast pace against him, he starts feeling the ball a little bit more.'' However, Popyrin's serve held him in good stead as he saved nine of 11 break points in the match. "It just shows that when I hit my spots I feel like I can hold, no matter what the score is,'' he said. Popyrin's victory set up a fourth-round clash with fifth seed Holger Rune on Saturday after the Dane advanced by beating Frenchman Alexandre Muller. On the same day, Alex de Minaur will take on Christopher O'Connell in an all-Australian third-round encounter. Earlier on Thursday, top-seeded German Alexander Zverev beat Italy's Matteo Arnaldi 6-7 (5-7) 6-3 6-2 to reach 500 ATP match victories. The 28-year-old Zverev - the 2017 champion - is the first ATP Tour player born in 1990 or later to win 500 matches. He won on clay in Munich in April for his 24th tour title. "I think I started playing better from the baseline. The longer the match went on, I started to find my rhythm a bit," Zverev said. "It was actually my backhand that was feeling a bit off in the beginning, which is strange, doesn't happen very often. "But after I found that shot, I was comfortable and I was happy about the level." Ranked third in the world, Zverev ended up the top seed in Toronto, with No.1 Jannik Sinner and No.2 Carlos Alcaraz skipping the hard-court event. Zverev advanced to face No.14 seed Francisco Cerundolo, a 6-3 6-4 winner over fellow Argentine Tomas Martin Etcheverry. Earlier, Alex Michelsen upset third-seeded Italian Lorenzo Musetti 3-6 7-6 (7-4) 6-4 to set up a clash with fellow American Learner Tien, a 7-6 (7-3) 6-3 winner over countryman Reilly Opelka. Eighth-seeded Casper Ruud of Norway topped Portugal's Nuno Borges 7-5 6-4 to set up a match with 11th-seeded Russian Karen Khachanov. - with AP Australia's Alexei Popyrin has won the battle of former champions to advance to the fourth round of the Canadian Open. Defending champ Popyrin, the 18th seed in Toronto, fought back to beat 10th-seeded Russian Daniil Medvedev 5-7 6-4 6-4 on Thursday (local time). It was a superb win for the Australian against the former world No.1 and 2021 US Open and Canadian Open champion in the lead-up to the year's final major on the hard courts at Flushing Meadows in New York. Popyrin, who stretched his unbeaten run in Canada to eight matches, was delighted to win, but thought he should have done it more easily. "I felt like I should have won that first set,'' said the Australian, who raced to an early 4-2 lead. "I was in the driver's seat. I felt like I was really comfortable out there, and then something happened. "I kind of let go and I started feeling my shots a little bit. When that happens, when you play a fast pace against him, he starts feeling the ball a little bit more.'' However, Popyrin's serve held him in good stead as he saved nine of 11 break points in the match. "It just shows that when I hit my spots I feel like I can hold, no matter what the score is,'' he said. Popyrin's victory set up a fourth-round clash with fifth seed Holger Rune on Saturday after the Dane advanced by beating Frenchman Alexandre Muller. On the same day, Alex de Minaur will take on Christopher O'Connell in an all-Australian third-round encounter. Earlier on Thursday, top-seeded German Alexander Zverev beat Italy's Matteo Arnaldi 6-7 (5-7) 6-3 6-2 to reach 500 ATP match victories. The 28-year-old Zverev - the 2017 champion - is the first ATP Tour player born in 1990 or later to win 500 matches. He won on clay in Munich in April for his 24th tour title. "I think I started playing better from the baseline. The longer the match went on, I started to find my rhythm a bit," Zverev said. "It was actually my backhand that was feeling a bit off in the beginning, which is strange, doesn't happen very often. "But after I found that shot, I was comfortable and I was happy about the level." Ranked third in the world, Zverev ended up the top seed in Toronto, with No.1 Jannik Sinner and No.2 Carlos Alcaraz skipping the hard-court event. Zverev advanced to face No.14 seed Francisco Cerundolo, a 6-3 6-4 winner over fellow Argentine Tomas Martin Etcheverry. Earlier, Alex Michelsen upset third-seeded Italian Lorenzo Musetti 3-6 7-6 (7-4) 6-4 to set up a clash with fellow American Learner Tien, a 7-6 (7-3) 6-3 winner over countryman Reilly Opelka. Eighth-seeded Casper Ruud of Norway topped Portugal's Nuno Borges 7-5 6-4 to set up a match with 11th-seeded Russian Karen Khachanov. - with AP Australia's Alexei Popyrin has won the battle of former champions to advance to the fourth round of the Canadian Open. Defending champ Popyrin, the 18th seed in Toronto, fought back to beat 10th-seeded Russian Daniil Medvedev 5-7 6-4 6-4 on Thursday (local time). It was a superb win for the Australian against the former world No.1 and 2021 US Open and Canadian Open champion in the lead-up to the year's final major on the hard courts at Flushing Meadows in New York. Popyrin, who stretched his unbeaten run in Canada to eight matches, was delighted to win, but thought he should have done it more easily. "I felt like I should have won that first set,'' said the Australian, who raced to an early 4-2 lead. "I was in the driver's seat. I felt like I was really comfortable out there, and then something happened. "I kind of let go and I started feeling my shots a little bit. When that happens, when you play a fast pace against him, he starts feeling the ball a little bit more.'' However, Popyrin's serve held him in good stead as he saved nine of 11 break points in the match. "It just shows that when I hit my spots I feel like I can hold, no matter what the score is,'' he said. Popyrin's victory set up a fourth-round clash with fifth seed Holger Rune on Saturday after the Dane advanced by beating Frenchman Alexandre Muller. On the same day, Alex de Minaur will take on Christopher O'Connell in an all-Australian third-round encounter. Earlier on Thursday, top-seeded German Alexander Zverev beat Italy's Matteo Arnaldi 6-7 (5-7) 6-3 6-2 to reach 500 ATP match victories. The 28-year-old Zverev - the 2017 champion - is the first ATP Tour player born in 1990 or later to win 500 matches. He won on clay in Munich in April for his 24th tour title. "I think I started playing better from the baseline. The longer the match went on, I started to find my rhythm a bit," Zverev said. "It was actually my backhand that was feeling a bit off in the beginning, which is strange, doesn't happen very often. "But after I found that shot, I was comfortable and I was happy about the level." Ranked third in the world, Zverev ended up the top seed in Toronto, with No.1 Jannik Sinner and No.2 Carlos Alcaraz skipping the hard-court event. Zverev advanced to face No.14 seed Francisco Cerundolo, a 6-3 6-4 winner over fellow Argentine Tomas Martin Etcheverry. Earlier, Alex Michelsen upset third-seeded Italian Lorenzo Musetti 3-6 7-6 (7-4) 6-4 to set up a clash with fellow American Learner Tien, a 7-6 (7-3) 6-3 winner over countryman Reilly Opelka. Eighth-seeded Casper Ruud of Norway topped Portugal's Nuno Borges 7-5 6-4 to set up a match with 11th-seeded Russian Karen Khachanov. - with AP Australia's Alexei Popyrin has won the battle of former champions to advance to the fourth round of the Canadian Open. Defending champ Popyrin, the 18th seed in Toronto, fought back to beat 10th-seeded Russian Daniil Medvedev 5-7 6-4 6-4 on Thursday (local time). It was a superb win for the Australian against the former world No.1 and 2021 US Open and Canadian Open champion in the lead-up to the year's final major on the hard courts at Flushing Meadows in New York. Popyrin, who stretched his unbeaten run in Canada to eight matches, was delighted to win, but thought he should have done it more easily. "I felt like I should have won that first set,'' said the Australian, who raced to an early 4-2 lead. "I was in the driver's seat. I felt like I was really comfortable out there, and then something happened. "I kind of let go and I started feeling my shots a little bit. When that happens, when you play a fast pace against him, he starts feeling the ball a little bit more.'' However, Popyrin's serve held him in good stead as he saved nine of 11 break points in the match. "It just shows that when I hit my spots I feel like I can hold, no matter what the score is,'' he said. Popyrin's victory set up a fourth-round clash with fifth seed Holger Rune on Saturday after the Dane advanced by beating Frenchman Alexandre Muller. On the same day, Alex de Minaur will take on Christopher O'Connell in an all-Australian third-round encounter. Earlier on Thursday, top-seeded German Alexander Zverev beat Italy's Matteo Arnaldi 6-7 (5-7) 6-3 6-2 to reach 500 ATP match victories. The 28-year-old Zverev - the 2017 champion - is the first ATP Tour player born in 1990 or later to win 500 matches. He won on clay in Munich in April for his 24th tour title. "I think I started playing better from the baseline. The longer the match went on, I started to find my rhythm a bit," Zverev said. "It was actually my backhand that was feeling a bit off in the beginning, which is strange, doesn't happen very often. "But after I found that shot, I was comfortable and I was happy about the level." Ranked third in the world, Zverev ended up the top seed in Toronto, with No.1 Jannik Sinner and No.2 Carlos Alcaraz skipping the hard-court event. Zverev advanced to face No.14 seed Francisco Cerundolo, a 6-3 6-4 winner over fellow Argentine Tomas Martin Etcheverry. Earlier, Alex Michelsen upset third-seeded Italian Lorenzo Musetti 3-6 7-6 (7-4) 6-4 to set up a clash with fellow American Learner Tien, a 7-6 (7-3) 6-3 winner over countryman Reilly Opelka. Eighth-seeded Casper Ruud of Norway topped Portugal's Nuno Borges 7-5 6-4 to set up a match with 11th-seeded Russian Karen Khachanov. - with AP
Perth Now
13 hours ago
- Perth Now
Popyrin power proves potent as Aussie ace prevails
Australia's Alexei Popyrin has won the battle of former champions to advance to the fourth round of the Canadian Open. Defending champ Popyrin, the 18th seed in Toronto, fought back after losing the first set to beat 10th-seeded Russian Daniil Medvedev 5-7 6-4 6-4 on Thursday (local time). It was a superb win for the Australian against the former world No.1 and 2021 US Open and Canadian Open champion in the lead-up to the year's final major on the hard courts at Flushing Meadows in New York. Popyrin's victory set up a fourth-round clash with fifth seed Holger Rune on Saturday after the Dane advanced by beating Frenchman Alexandre Muller. On the same day, Alex de Minaur will take on Christopher O'Connell in the third round in an all-Australian encounter. De Minaur is looking to back up his success from Washington, where he picked up his 10th career title. Earlier on Thursday, top-seeded German Alexander Zverev beat Italy's Matteo Arnaldi 6-7 (5-7) 6-3 6-2 to reach 500 match victories. The 28-year-old Zverev - the 2017 champion - is the first ATP Tour player born in 1990 or later to win 500 matches. He won on clay in Munich in April for his 24th tour title. "I think I started playing better from the baseline. The longer the match went on, I started to find my rhythm a bit," Zverev said. "It was actually my backhand that was feeling a bit off in the beginning, which is strange, doesn't happen very often. "But after I found that shot, I was comfortable and I was happy about the level." Ranked third in the world, Zverev ended up the top seed in Toronto with No.1 Jannik Sinner and No.2 Carlos Alcaraz skipping the hard-court event. No.5 Jack Draper and No.6 Novak Djokovic are also absent. Zverev advanced to face No.14 seed Francisco Cerundolo, a 6-3 6-4 winner over fellow Argentine Tomas Martin Etcheverry. Earlier, Alex Michelsen upset third-seeded Italian Lorenzo Musetti 3-6 7-6 (7-4) 6-4 to set up a clash with fellow American Learner Tien, a 7-6 (7-3) 6-3 winner over countryman Reilly Opelka. Eighth-seeded Casper Ruud of Norway topped Portugal's Nuno Borges 7-5 6-4 to set up a match with 11th-seeded Russian Karen Khachanov, who beat American Emilio Nava in three sets.
ABC News
2 days ago
- ABC News
Maya Joint eliminated from Canadian Open by American McCartney Kessler
Australia's Maya Joint has pushed 28th seed McCartney Kessler to the limit before losing in three sets at the Canadian Open. The 19-year-old Aussie came flying out of the blocks in Montreal on Wednesday, local time, taking the first set, before the American bounced back strongly to claim the next two for a 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 victory. Little separated the players throughout the match, which threw up 14 break points for each. Joint converted three of those chances, while her American opponent managed four breaks. Joint had been hoping to back up her first-round upset of local favourite Leylah Fernandez, the world No.24 who was fresh off claiming the biggest title of her career on Sunday, the Washington Open. Despite the loss, Joint has shown she is finding top form ahead of the year's final major, the US Open, which kicks off in New York on August 24. Joint is already a two-time WTA title winner this year and will be looking to start making a real impact at grand slam level. She reached the second round at Flushing Meadows in 2024, but is yet to progress past the first round of the other majors. Australia's only remaining competitor in the women's singles, 15th-seeded Daria Kasatkina, plays her third-round match against 24th seed Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine on Thursday. In other second-round results on Wednesday, six-time grand slam champion Iga Swiatek was all business in a 6-3, 6-1 demolition of China's Guo Hanyu. The Polish superstar, seeded second in Montreal, is hot off her record-breaking win in the Wimbledon singles final, where she served up two "donuts" to American Amanda Anisimova. "I think I played a really solid match today," Swiatek said. "Playing the first match on hard court after a pretty long break from the surface is always tricky, so I'm happy that I just focused on myself, adjusted to the conditions and played well." American third seed and two-time defending champion Jessica Pegula remained on track for a title hat-trick by beating Maria Sakkari of Greece 7-5, 6-4. Four-time major champ Naomi Osaka of Japan upset 13th-seeded Russian Liudmila Samsonova 4-6, 7-6 (8-6), 6-3 to continue her impressive return to tennis after taking a maternity break. Sixth-seeded American Madison Keys was dominant over Germany's Laura Siegemund 6-2, 6-1. AAP/AP
