Daniil Medvedev survives scare before beating Laslo Djere at Halle Open

LONDON – Daniil Medvedev had faced Laslo Djere twice, with one win apiece on clay, and their most recent encounter before Wednesday was a straight-sets win over the Serb at the 2022 French Open.

On the grass, though, it is a different ball game altogether.

The Russian breezed through the first set of their Halle Open second-round clash in just 39 minutes, before he was made to battle hard in a tiebreak which he lost.

The world No. 3, a former US Open champion, then recovered well and again dominated his less-heralded opponent in the deciding set to win 6-3, 6-7 (5-7), 6-3.

The victory was a boost for Medvedev, who is seeking to set things right after making it to the 2022 final in the German city before

losing to Poland’s Hubert Hurkacz in straight sets.

More importantly, it also builds up momentum for the July 3-16 Wimbledon, where he has never made it past the fourth round.

“Grass is so tough for me,” said Medvedev, who missed the 2022 edition due to Wimbledon’s ban on Russian and Belarusian players competing.

“You can actually play a perfect match and lose on two tiebreaks, so it’s a little bit strange for me. When I see top players like Roger (Federer), from one side they can seem like aliens but you try to see the best in them, and how they are able (to win) on this surface, to have so many titles. Wimbledon, Halle, whatever.

“It’s just amazing and that’s what I try to watch. Happy to win and looking forward to the next matches.”

He will next face Spain’s Roberto Bautista Agut, who triumphed over American Brandon Nakashima 7-5, 7-6 (7-2), in the quarter-finals.

Following the match, retired great Federer appeared on court to receive an honorary trophy for winning the tournament 10 times and also to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the competition.

Andy Murray, meanwhile, said that he will not “overreact” to his opening-round exit at the Queen’s Club Championships after Tuesday’s 6-3, 6-1 defeat by Australian Alex de Minaur ended the three-time Gland Slam winner’s hopes of securing a seeding at Wimbledon.

The 36-year-old Scot, who has won Queen’s a record five times, came into the match on the back of clinching back-to-back grass-court titles at the Surbiton Trophy and Nottingham Open in June but failed to continue his winning run.

“Obviously after today, it’s easy to overreact,” said the former world No. 1, who has resurrected his career after hip resurfacing surgery.

“I lost to a good player and it was obviously very comfortable. But at the same time, over the past couple of weeks, yes, it’s obviously not the same level of opponents, but I won the (Nottingham Open) last week without dropping a set.

“I only lost one set in Surbiton. Was holding serve very comfortably. Was moving well, hitting the ball well. There are a lot of positive signs there.”

Murray, who is now ranked 38th in the world, opted to skip tournaments in the recent clay-court swing to focus on the grass-court season as he bids for a third Wimbledon title.

Elsewhere, on Wednesday, Kazakh Elena Rybakina’s preparations to retain her Wimbledon crown were dealt a blow as she lost 6-7 (1-7), 6-3, 6-4 in the Berlin Open round of 16 to fellow big-hitter Donna Vekic.

The No. 2 seed had 14 aces but could not fashion a single break as she fell to the 23rd-ranked Croat.

Greek sixth seed Maria Sakkari, on the other hand, eased into the last 16 after seeing off Frenchwoman Alize Cornet 6-4, 6-2. She will next take on Aliaksandra Sasnovich, who beat fellow Belarusian Victoria Azarenka 6-4, 6-4.

Separately, seven-time Grand Slam champion Venus Williams and former world No. 3 were handed wildcard entries into Wimbledon, the organisers announced on Wednesday.

Williams, 43, has won at the All England Club five times and returned to action in June after a five-month injury layoff. She is currently ranked 697th and is competing in the Birmingham Classic.

Ukrainian Svitolina reached the French Open quarter-finals following a maternity break before suffering a defeat against Czech teenager Linda Fruhvirtova on her return to grass at Birmingham earlier this week. REUTERS, AFP