Danil Medvedev rallied from one set down to beat Matteo Arnaldi 5-7 6-4 6-4 after 1 hour and 44 minutes reaching the fourth round at the Shanghai Rolex Masters. The match was held under the roof inside the Qizhong Forest Sports City Arena due to rain.
Medvedev converted four of his twelve break points and hit 10 aces. Arnaldi fired nine aces, but he made six double faults and faced 12 break points.
Medvedev earned an early break in the first game of the match after a double fault from Arnaldi. The Italian player faced two break points in the third game but he saved them. Arnaldi missed a break point in the fourth game and fended off two break points.
Arnaldi won six of the next eight games to clinch the first set 7-5. Arnaldi broke back in the sixth game on an unforced forehand error from Medvedev. Arnaldi saved another break point before earning two set points on return in the 12thgame. The Italian player earned his second break to close out the first set 7-5 after Medvedev hit long with his forehand.
Medvedev went up an early break in the first game of the second set, but Arnaldi broke straight back to draw level to 1-1. Medvedev received two code violations and a point penalty after arguing with the umpire.
Medvedev earned two break points in the seventh game. The Russian player made a backhand error on his first break point, but he converted his second chance to take a 4-3 lead. Arnaldi earned three break-back points in the 10th game, but Medvedev saved them with two aces and his first serve to close out the second set 6-4 at deuce.
Both players went on serve in the first eight games. Medvedev won his service game at deuce to draw level to 4-4. Arnaldi went down 0-40 in the ninth game and faced three break points. Medvedev converted his second break point with a passing shot winner to take a 5-4 lead. Medvedev went up 40-15 when he was serving for the match. Arnaldi saved the first two match points- Medvedev closed out on his third match point to improve to 4-0 in his head-to-head series against Arnaldi. “It was a tough match, a very close one. I actually felt like that’s where tennis is funny. I felt like in the third set, I was probably the better player, had more opportunities. I did not manage to win it, played a bad game at the end of the set. In the other sets, I thought it was closer. Maybe even he had the edge on some of the moments, but that’s why tennis is crazy. You can win when you don’t expect it, and lose when you expect to win, so I am happy to be here in two days”,said Medvedev.