Tsitsipas sets up Medvedev meeting in Shanghai Masters last 16

Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas, the No 10 seed, defeated Frenchman Alexandre Muller 6-3, 7-5 to advance to the last 16 of the Shanghai Masters at the Qi Zhong Tennis Center on Tuesday.

Tsitsipas overcame Muller in less than 90 minutes on the back of seven aces and 28 winners. He suffered one break on his serve but converted four break points on the Frenchman’s to take the win.

The world No 12 will next face Russian Daniil Medvedev, the No 5 seed, for another intriguing clash on the court, given their troubled history that dates back to 2018, when they faced each other for the first time.

The match, won by Medvedev, ended with a heated exchange at the net in Miami.

Since then, Tsitsipas and Medvedev have come face-to-face 12 more times, with the Russian holding a 9-4 lead in the head-to-head. This will be their first meeting in 2024. Their last match-up went Medvedev’s way (6-4, 7-6 (6)) in the semi-finals of the Vienna Open in 2023.

Medvedev has reached the Round of 16 after close fights against Brazil’s Thiago Seyboth Wild (7-5, 7-5) in the second round and Italian Matteo Arnaldi, the No 29 seed, (5-7, 6-4, 6-4) in the third.

The Greek, on the other hand, won against Japanese wildcard Kei Nishikori (7-6 (6), 6-4) ahead of his victory.

Tsitsipas and Medvedev have lived through several frosty moments both off and on the court, producing unique victory celebrations to the fans’ amusement.

The bitterness between the two must have eased off to some degree by now, especially after a recent campaign together for Team Europe at the 2024 Laver Cup but Shanghai shall find that out soon.

Shanghai Masters 1000, other third-round results (Qi Zhong Tennis Center, hard, USD 8.995.555, most recent results first):

• Tallon Griekspoor vs. Alexander Zverev
• Flavio Cobolli vs. Novak Djokovic
• David Goffin vs. Marcos Giron
• Jiri Lehecka vs. Holger Rune
• Frances Tiafoe vs. Roman Safiullin
• Alexei Popyrin vs. Grigor Dimitrov
• Taylor Fritz vs. Yosuke Watanuki
• Roberto Carballes Baena vs. Ben Shelton
• Jakub Mensik vs. Alexander Shevchenko
• Tomas Machac (30) beat Aleksandar Vukic (Q): 6-4, 6-2
• Gael Monfils vs. Ugo Humbert
• Tommy Paul (11) beat Alejandro Tabilo (19): 6-7 (2), 7-6 (6), 6-2
• Carlos Alcaraz (3) beat Yibing Wu (WC): 7-6 (5), 6-3
• Jannik Sinner (1) beat Tomas Martin Etcheverry (31): 6-7 (3), 6-4, 6-2
• Daniil Medvedev beat Matteo Arnaldi (29): 5-7, 6-4, 6-4

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