Impressive against Sinner, Medvedev into first Marseille semifinal

Top-seeded Daniil Medvedev will face Matthew Ebden in the semifinals of the Open 13 Provence after winning his quarterfinal match in Marseille on Friday.

The 25-year-old Russian needed just an hour and 15 minutes to topple Jannik Sinner, 6-2, 6-4, and extend their head-to-head series to 2-0.

“[It is my] first time here in the semifinals in Marseille, even if it is my fourth time playing here and third time in the main draw," Medvedev said after his victory. "I am really happy about it. Hopefully, I can go further.”

Unlike his previous match against Sinner, where he had to rally from a set down, Medvedev put forth an impressive performance this time around. His clutch play was superb, saving the only break point he faced and converted three break points to advance to his first semifinal in Marseille.

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“Jannik always tries to hit the ball as hard as he can," said Medvedev. "You cannot give him easy balls, otherwise you are going to run all over the place and he is probably going to hit a winner. I needed to take time from him. I need to be aggressive and it worked out very well today.

“This one was easier [than last year]. I think I showed a great level. I was on top of the match the whole time. He had only one break point… Jannik is an amazing player, so I am happy to win that easily this time.”

Win or lose, the Australian Open runner-up will rise to No. 2 in the ATP rankings come Monday morning, becoming the first player outside the Big 4 (Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray) to occupy that spot since 2005.

Two-time defending champion Stefanos Tsitsipas failed to advance to the semifinals after letting a one-set lead evaporate. The second-seeded Greek succumbed to local favorite Pierre-Hugues Herbert, 7-6 (6), 4-6, 6-2.

Earlier on Friday Ebden, a qualifier from Australia, made history in Marseille by becoming the lowest-ranked player to reach the tournament’s semifinals with his 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 upset win over third-seeded Karen Khachanov.