Djokovic to face Medvedev in Dubai semis, Rublev gets Zverev Fourth-ranked Rudd loses to qualifier Daniel in Acapulco Top-seeded Musetti knocked out by Munar at Chile Open

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) No. 1 Novak Djokovic defeated Hubert Gurkacs 6:3, 7:5 to face former No. 1 Daniil Medvedev in the semifinals of the Dubai Championship.

The five-time Dubai champion’s 20th straight victory set the stage for a last-four match against Medvedev, who defeated Bornu Coric 6-3, 6-2 in a nightcap in a hard court tournament.

“Now I play well, but when you play Novak, Novak is always the favourite,” Medvedev said in an on-court interview. “He plays great, moves great. I’ve always had good fights with him so I hope to be in better shape tomorrow because that’s the only way to beat him.”

Djokovic is playing in his first tournament since winning the Australian Open, claiming a record 22nd Grand Slam singles title. The 35-year-old Serbian suffered a partially torn hamstring as he claimed his 10th title at Melbourne Park.

Djokovic has improved to 15-0 this season and hasn’t lost since losing in the Paris Masters final to Holger Rune last November. He then won the ATP Finals title in Turin.

In the other semi-final match, the reigning Dubai champion Andrey Rublev will face Alexander Zverev.

Rublev moved forward by defeating Botić van de Zandschulp 6-3, 7-6 (3). Zverev defeated Lorenzo Sonego 7-5, 6-4.

This will be Zverev’s first semi-final since the French Open last June, when he injured his right ankle playing against Rafael Nadal. A few days later, he underwent surgery to repair torn ligaments.

“The last, I would say, nine months have been very difficult for me,” the 25-year-old German, runner-up at the 2020 US Open, said in an on-court interview. “Hard work pays off and I’m very pleased with the progress and the way I’m playing now.”

Rublev, a 25-year-old Russian ranked 6th, reached the semi-finals for the third year in a row.

Acapulco, Mexico. Fourth-place Casper Rudd lost to Taro qualifier Daniel 7–5, 2–6, 7–6 (5) in a Round of 16 match at the Mexico Open.

For Daniel, this victory was the first in the game against a player from the top 10 and took him to the quarterfinals. 30-year-old Daniel, ranked 125th in the ATP rankings, played 0-8 against players from the top 10.

Prior to defeating Ruud, Daniel’s best victory was over Novak Djokovic at Indian Wells in 2018 when the Serbian finished 13th.

Ruud was ranked 2nd after losing in the last US Open final to Carlos Alcaraz. Against Daniel, the Norwegian made 46 unforced errors and slipped to 3-4 in 2023.

Daniel will try to extend his successful streak against Alex De Minor, who beat Jacopo Berrettini 6:1, 6:0.

In other matches on Wednesday, Frances Tiafoe beat Feliciano Lopez 6-2, 7-6(6) and will face Taylor Fritz, who defeated Denis Shapovalov 6-4, 6-4.

In addition, Mackenzie McDonald edged out Brandon Nakashima 6-2, 6-0 and will take on Tommy Paul, who reached the quarterfinals when Michael Mmoh retired in the second set and Matteo Berrettini edged out Elias Ymer 6-3, 6-3.

SANTIAGO, Chile. Spain’s Jaume Munar beat top seed Lorenzo Musetti 6-4, 6-4 to advance to the Chile Open clay court quarter-finals.

Musetti, the 18th-placed Italian, has dropped 1-3 in South America this season.

66th-placed Munar’s next opponent will be Brazil’s Thiago Monteiro, who took the lead after beating Italy’s Marco Cecchinato 3-6, 6-3, 6-2.

Earlier Wednesday, Germany’s Yannick Hanfmann beat Roberto Carbales Baena 7-6 (6), 6-2. Hanfmann’s next player will be either Diego Schwartzman, who finished fourth, or Chile’s Nicolas Jarri.