It was a
Daniil Medvedev masterclass as he surged past
Alejandro Davidovich Fokina into the semi-finals of the 2024
Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships 6-2, 6-3. It is a 52nd tour level semi-final for the returning Russian.
ADF hasn't ever fared well against Medvedev and he continued that streak again. He was denied chances on his serve and despite a good early start with drop shots aplenty, he went back to trying to usurp him from the baseline and it didn't work.
Medvedev picked off the serve of Davidovich Fokina consistently as he was too good for the Spaniard especially from his usual serve position which allowed him to just pick it off at will. He broke him twice in the opening set and closed out the set with the second 6-2. The second set opened with an early break from Medvedev in a sign of things to come.
Davidovich Fokina was left frustrated as he couldn't find a route past as Medvedev used that frustration to his benefit cruising to the finishing line. On what is his return to the sport after the Australian Open disappointment, he is certainly using fuel for the fire.
Next up will be either Hubert Hurkacz or Ugo Humbert. This in a day which saw two retirements meaning the first semi-final was confirmed without any matches being fully completed. Andrey Rublev and Alexander Bublik were the beneficiaries as Sebastian Korda and Jiri Lehecka retired both a set down.