Daniil Medvedev Disqualified in Beijing After Hitting Ball into Crowd
Daniil Medvedev apologized after being disqualified in the Beijing semifinals against Novak Djokovic for hitting a ball into the stands and striking a spectator.
Daniil Medvedev apologized following the incident that led to his disqualification in the semifinals of the Beijing tournament against Novak Djokovic. The Russian tennis player, trailing 7:5, 5:3 while the Serb was serving for the match, hit a ball in frustration toward the stands, striking a spectator sitting in the front row.
Apology and Reaction
"First of all, I am very sorry to the spectator," Medvedev said after the match. "I am trying to get in touch with him if he wants. I hope I can apologize to him personally and see how he is feeling."
The world number five emphasized that he had no intention of hurting anyone: "It was 100% a mistake. You can see that I didn't hit the ball out of anger. I do a lot of bad things sometimes, but usually ball abuse is not something that characterizes me. The ball came back to me and I just tried to hit it somewhere so it wouldn't stay on the court."
"When I saw what happened, I felt terrible. I don't think I was ever close to a situation like this. The most important thing is that I hope he is okay, because you never know in cases like this."
Consequences and Historical Context
The disqualification will cost Medvedev dearly. According to ATP rules, he is expected to lose the 200 ranking points he was supposed to receive for reaching the semifinals and his prize money of approximately $219,000. In addition, he could face a further fine from the tour.
According to Opta, Medvedev is the first player to be disqualified at the Beijing tournament since its inception in 1993, and the first to be disqualified at an ATP tournament since Denis Shapovalov in Washington in 2024.
