Daniil Medvedev attempts to make up for blunderous error after visiting spectator he hit in hospital

Daniil Medvedev has been in the centre of controversy since his latest episode of rage at the China Open. He was defaulted from his semi-final against eventual champion Novak Djokovic after hitting a ball into the stands, striking a spectator. He has since gone to hospital to visit that fan to make a personal gesture following his ill-tempered actions.

It was a costly decision that the Russian made. Accidentally guiding the ball to the innocent spectator cost him the chance of battling for a spot in the final, albeit Djokovic was 5-3 up in the second set and three points away from the win.

His prize money and ranking points have also been taken off his tally. This is a detrimental blow to his aspirations of returning to the ATP Finals following missing out in 2025 after a downward spiral in form. He has since found his feet on an inconsistent basis in 2026 and was looking good to challenge for a second consecutive title on Chinese soil.

After winning the Hangzhou Open title against fellow countryman and good friend Andrey Rublev, he got the better of Pablo Carreno Busta, Jan-Lennard Struff and Francisco Cerundolo in straight sets before facing Djokovic in the semi-finals.

Down 7-5, 5-3, the match would be cut short at that time with Medvedev exiting the tournament in a sorry way. After the match, he was apologetic and regretful of his actions.

“Terribly sorry to the spectator, first of all. I’m trying to get in touch with him, if he wants it,” Medvedev said. “Hopefully I can apologise in person and see how he feels. I mean, 100 per cent (an) accident. You can see that I didn’t hit the ball in anger. Actually I do a lot of bad things, but usually ball abuse is not my thing.

“The ball was bouncing back, so I tried to, like, just hit it anywhere, so it doesn’t go out from the court. When I saw the result, I mean, I felt horrible because, again, I don’t think I was ever close to such (a) situation. The most important (thing is), I hope that he’s OK because you never know with these types of situations.”

According to Lorenzo Ercoli, a journalist for Corriere dello Sport and Spazio Tennis, the former US Open champion did successfully meet up with and apologise to the spectator who was hit with the tennis ball.

On X, he wrote, "The spectator is doing well and no serious injuries were reported, but he is not willing to provide any further information about his condition."

It is a kind act from Medvedev, trying desperately to overturn the wrongs of his actions. It was an unfortunate mistake that he has paid the price for dearly. It remains to be seen how this affects him for the rest of the year with his ATP Finals hopes still in the balance.

The good news is that Jannik Sinner will no longer be competing. The Italian has cancelled the remainder of his 2026 campaign, including the ATP Finals on home turf, due to an ongoing knee injury. This opens up another spot for players to capitalise on with Medvedev's chances of featuring in Turin still very much on the cards.

For the time being, he will stay in China to compete in the Shanghai Masters, the penultimate Masters 1000 tournament of the year. In good form, the 2019 champion will hope to produce another commendable result.