Medvedev Reaches First Quarter-Final At Home In Moscow

Qualifier Daniil Medvedev reached his first ATP World Tour quarter-final on home soil on Thursday at the VTB Kremlin Cup, knocking out 2010 champion and fourth seed Viktor Troicki, 3-6, 6-3, 6-1.  

“I talked to the coach and with the Russian players who had already beaten him. They gave me some tips. But, of course, you can’t win just thanks to those tips. Otherwise he wouldn’t be ranked No. 30,” said Medvedev. “I was very glad to see so many spectators cheering for me and this support gave me additional strength. Even though I was tired after the first set, the crowd helped me to win the match.”

The Russian has jumped from No. 329 to No. 123 this year in the Emirates ATP Rankings. Medvedev, who is a contestant in the Tecnifibre’s Young Guns Contest, will now challenge Stephane Robert for a place in the final four.

Joining him in reaching his maiden ATP World Tour quarter-final is wild card and fellow Russian Alexander Bublik. The 19 year old recorded the biggest win of his career by shocking top seed Roberto Bautista Agut, 6-2, 7-5.

“I still don’t believe what I just did. It’s incredible. I played great tennis,” said Bublik. “I had nothing to lose against him. It was my first time out on such a big stage against a top player, so I went out aggressively and tried to enjoy it.”

Punching well above his Emirates ATP Ranking of No. 266, Bublik raced out to a 4-0 lead and continued putting pressure on the Spaniard to take the opening set. Bublik showed his sign of nerves when attempting to serve out the match at 5-4, but regrouped in the next game by breaking Bautista Agut with a forehand passing shot. The Russian made good on his second chance by firing an ace on match point and raising both arms over his head in disbelief.

Bublik has jumped nearly 700 spots this season in the Emirates ATP Rankings. He’s won four ITF Futures titles and scored his first win over a Top 100 player last week against Jiri Vesely at the ATP Challenger Tour event in Tashkent. His run in Moscow marks the first time he’s ever won a main draw match on the ATP World Tour.

Next up for Bublik is another Spaniard in sixth seed Pablo Carreno Busta, a winner due to retirement earlier in the day over Damir Dzumhur, 6-3, 2-1. 

Third seed Philipp Kohlschreiber beat Dusan Lajovic 7-5, 3-6, 6-3 to reach his ninth quarter-final of the year (also Sofia, Rotterdam, Dubai, Barcelona, Munich, Stuttgart, Halle, Hamburg). He goes on to face Thomaz Bellucci, a 6-3, 3-6, 6-2 victor over eighth seed Andrey Kuznetsov.