Daniil Medvedev was pushed close to his limit in his semi-final clash with Frances Tiafoe but got the job done in straight sets to advance to Indian Wells final.
Medvedev, who has never gone beyond the fourth round of Indian Wells before this week, fought hard to keep his dream of a fourth consecutive title alive, emerging with a 7-5, 7-6(5) victory over the home favourite in a one hour and 46-minute-long tussle.
Medvedev needed eight match points to dispatch the 14th seed, who didn’t drop a single set en route to semi-finals, and he admitted afterwards that he was ‘disappointed’ to not have closed out the match more quickly.
‘’I really didn’t want to play the third set because it’s a whole set where I have to break the guy again,” Medvedev said after the match.
“I’m super disappointed and frustrated to not finish the match earlier but at the same time that’s tennis.’’
Medvedev showed no sign of discomfort after rolling his ankle in his quarter-final match against Alexander Zverev, a promising sign ahead of the final, and he said he felt as though he ‘played good’ in general throughout.
“In general, I played good, especially if I closed the match out earlier I would have been really happy with myself.
“There is no time to go hard on yourself when there is a match tomorrow, so I’m really happy to not lose this match.’’
Carlos Alcaraz awaits Medvedev in the final of the Masters 1000 event, and with the number one ranking on the line for the Spaniard, and a fourth consecutive title on offer for the Russian, it promises to be a showstopper.
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