Daniil Medvedev appears to be unbreakable this week at the Terra Wortmann Open in Halle.

The World No. 1 was frequently pressured by Roberto Bautista Agut in the pair’s quarter-final clash on Thursday, but Medvedev was clinical in taking his chances on his way to a 6-2, 6-4 victory at the ATP 500 event.

The Medvedev serve once again proved a crucial weapon at key moments in the one-hour, 27-minute encounter on OWL Arena. A combination of power and accuracy with his delivery helped the top seed save nine from nine break points against the Spaniard, bringing his tournament total to 17 out of 17 break points saved across three matches.

The win was Medvedev’s first against the Spaniard in four attempts. Bautista Agut was making his fourth quarter-final appearance in Halle and produced some high-class tennis as he bid to match his semi-final run from 2018, yet he was unable to convert his break point chances as Medvedev sent down a barrage of big serves to frequently dig himself out of trouble.

“Well first of all, he’s a great player!” said Medvedev when asked about his past struggles against Bautista Agut. “I remember all the matches we had… He was playing some [great] tennis and it was tough for me to win. Today I had my plan, managed to keep it going. Definitely got more edge on the most important points, because he had more break points than me. It was not easy, and I’m happy to win.”

A high-quality start saw both players fend off a break point to hold in the early stages, but from 2-2 it was Medvedev who stepped up to take command. The World No. 1 reeled off four consecutive game to take the first set, striking the ball effectively off both wings to accumulate 14 winners to Bautista Agut’s 4.

Despite the disappointment of falling behind, the Spaniard appeared rejuvenated in the second set. He surged to 15/40 on the Medvedev serve in the second game with some top-quality all-court play, but could not find the finishing touch. He also missed out after leading 0/40 in the eighth game and was paid to pay by the World No. 1, who converted his sole break point of the set at 3-3 to claim a decisive break.

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Medvedev will now chase a 25th tour-level championship match appearance in a semi-final clash against Oscar Otte, after the home favourite earlier defeated eighth seed Karen Khachanov, 4-6, 7-6(5), 6-4.

Otte is making his tournament debut in Halle, and the 28-year-old is currently projected to rise to No. 36 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings thanks to his run to the final four. Victory in Saturday’s semi-final will push him even higher to No. 31, and Medvedev is expecting a tough test from the German.

“I know that he’s a great player, especially on grass and he plays very good on clay also,” said Medvedev. “He made the semis [in Stuttgart] last week, losing to Matteo [Berrettini] in two tie-breakers. So he’s a great player, great serve, great volleyer- So it’s not going to be easy. I need to prepare well, show my best tennis and try to win.

“We’ve warmed up twice [together] and practised once [this week], even playing a set which ended in a tie-break. So we’ve started to know each other better and better, so it’s actually fun that we are playing each other tomorrow, because when you practise with one player a lot, it’s fun to see him in the tournament later in the week. But tomorrow we are definitely not going to be friends!”

Stefanos Tsitsipas’ hunt for a maiden grass-court title will next take him to the Mallorca Championships, after the tournament announced Thursday that the World No. 6 had received a wild card for the ATP 250 event.

Tsitsipas will make his debut at the Mallorca tournament, to be held from June 19-25, in a field that also includes World No. 1 and defending champion Daniil Medvedev. Tsitsipas played just one match on grass in 2021, at Wimbledon, but has already played four matches on the surface this year across the ATP 250 event in Stuttgart and the ATP 500 in Halle.

Tsitsipas is ✔️

🇬🇷 @steftsitsipas receives a wildcard and he will play in Mallorca.@atptour | @ATPTour_ES | #MallorcaChampionships pic.twitter.com/iHwOKh3Nz2

— Mallorca Championships (@MallorcaChamps) June 16, 2022

Tsitsipas’ entry into the Mallorca draw also raises the possibility of a rematch with Nick Kyrgios. The pair played out a thrilling second-round encounter in Halle on Wednesday, with the Australian prevailing in three sets. Kyrgios, who is set to face Pablo Carreno Busta in the quarter-finals in Germany on Friday, will also compete in Mallorca and will be making his tournament debut.

The 26-year-old has also signalled his intention to play doubles in Spain, posting “Anyone for dubs in Mallorca?” on his Twitter feed on Wednesday.

Anyone for dubs in Mallorca?

— Nicholas Kyrgios (@NickKyrgios) June 15, 2022

Kyrgios has enjoyed success on the doubles court in 2022, winning a maiden Grand Slam title at January’s Australian Open with Thanasi Kokkinakis.

Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic’s hunt for a maiden title at the Cinch Championships in London came close to ending at the quarter-final stage on Thursday, but the second seeds dug deep in a Match Tie-break to sneak past John Peers and Filip Polasek at the ATP 500 event.

Mektic and Pavic fended off a match point for their opponents at 8/9, reeling off three points in a row to seal a dramatic one-hour, 36-minute victory. The all-Croatian duo is chasing a third title on grass in the United Kingdom, having triumphed in Eastbourne and at Wimbledon in 2021.

Their semi-final opponents at The Queen’s Club will be Taylor Fritz and Tommy Paul, who completed a 6-4, 6-4 win against Alex de Minaur and Cameron Norrie.

Lloyd Glasspool and Harri Heliovaara upset top seeds Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury for the second time this season in the other quarter-final played on Thursday. The British-Finnish pairing defeated the world’s top-ranked pairing in Rome in early May, and they proved too good again on the grass in London, running out 7-6(8), 6-2 winners to book a semi-final against Rohan Bopanna and Denis Shapovalov.

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Seeded Pairings Dominate In Halle
At the Terra Wortmann Open in Halle, the top four seeded pairings all booked semi-final spots with straight-sets victories on Thursday.

Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos broke serve once in each set to overcome Santiago Gonzalez and Andres Molteni. The top seeds are chasing their seventh tour-level title together in Germany, but are yet to lift a trophy on grass. They will next face the fourth-seeded pairing of Ivan Dodig and Austin Krajicek, after the Roland Garros finalists ousted Andrey Golubev and Maximo Gonzalez, 7-6(3), 6-2.

There was quarter-final heartbreak for home favourites Kevin Krawietz and Andreas Mies, who fell to fellow German Tim Puetz and his partner Michael Venus. Puetz and Venus broke in the 12th game of each set to prevail 7-5, 7-5.

Puetz and Venus, the latter of whom won the Halle title in 2019 alongside Raven Klaasen, will take on the in-form second seeds Marcelo Arevalo and Jean-Julien Rojer. The Roland Garros champions extended their winning streak to eight with a 6-3, 6-2 win against Yannick Hanfmann and Jan-Lennard Struff.

New week, same result.

Six days after Daniil Medvedev defeated Ilya Ivashka in ‘s-Hertogenbosch, he earned the same outcome on Thursday at the Terra Wortmann Open in Halle.

Top seed Medvedev came through another tough opening set against the World No. 42, but ultimately proved too strong as he sealed a 7-6(4), 6-3 victory at the ATP 500 event in north-west Germany.

Medvedev was pleased to prevail in another high-quality clash with Ivashka, who was aiming to reach his fourth quarter-final of the season on the Halle grass.

“He is a great player,” said Medvedev after he improved his lead in the pair’s ATP Head2Head series to 3-1. “He had a lot of bad luck with injuries at the beginning of the season. At the end of last season he was playing really great tennis.

“I’ve known him since I was very young, we actually played [each other] in Futures, Challengers, and on the ATP Tour. He beat me once in Davis Cup, which is a really important tournament. So he knows how to play tennis, he knows how to play well on grass, so I’m really happy that two times in a row I managed to pass a tough test.”

It was by no means plain sailing for the World No. 1. Ivashka showed intent from the start in OWL Arena, striking cleanly through the ball to hurry his opponent. Yet just as in his opening-round win against David Goffin, Medvedev’s ability to find big serves at key moments proved crucial. He fended off three set points at 4-5 to stay in the opening set before going onto to clinch it in a tie-break.

Things were more comfortable for Medvedev in the second set, when a series of finely-crafted passing shots were the highlight as he wrapped up a one-hour, 36-minute victory to improve his career record on grass to 30-15.

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Medvedev next faces seventh seed Roberto Bautista Agut in his maiden quarter-final appearance in Halle, after the Spaniard defeated Dutch qualifier Tallon Griekspoor 6-7(6), 6-4, 6-2. Despite reclaiming the No. 1 spot in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings on Monday, Medvedev has not changed his approach stepping out on court in Germany as he seeks his second tour-level title on grass, even if his opponents might.

“I think it will depend on the player and the match, and on my level also,” he said when asked whether his opponents were likely to raise their game when facing the top-ranked player in the world. “Some are going to be a little bit intimidated that they are playing the World No. 1 and they have a tough draw. If they lose, maybe it is nothing special.

“And some on the contrary. Maybe they don’t have the best confidence at the moment and if they beat the World No. 1, that is where it starts.

“My goal is every time I go on the court just to be the best player possible, and if my opponent wins, congrats, and let’s go for the next one.”