World No. 3 Daniil Medvedev keeps his title quest alive at the Mutua Madrid Open after battling from a set down Qualifier Alexander Shevchenko to record a 4-6, 6-1, 7-5 third-round triumph, recording his first back-to-back win at the tournament.
The 27-year-old advanced to the last 16 in Madrid for the first time in his career after a two-hour, 43-minute battle at the Caja Magica.
Next, he will meet 16th seed Alex de Minaur or Qualifier Aslan Karatsev.
In his on-court interview, he commented on the challenge posed by his young opponent, stressing: “I practiced with him before. I know that he can play very well.”
“The more consistent he is [and] the more matches he plays like this. Maybe next time, he is going to win, and the higher he is going to go. I’m very happy that today I managed to beat him.”
Facing a Top 10 player for the first time in his career, Shevchenko displayed a strong performance behind his serve, winning 93 percent of the first serve points in the opener.
The 22-year-old broke twice at the start of the first set and held to take a 4-0 advantage.
Frustrated, the player mentored by Gilles Cervara failed to produce his best tennis, and within 30 minutes of play, he found himself 1-5 down in the score.
Then, a late challenge by the 19-time ATP titlist resulted in a break of serve in the eighth game when the three-time ATP Challenger Tour champion was serving for the set.
Despite improving his game, Medvedev could not deny his opponent a 6-4 win after 51 minutes.
However, the second seed recovered into the second set, finding his rhythm to balance play while opening a 3-0 lead.
Under pressure, Shevchenko found a way to save five break points in a tight fourth game, which spanned over 16 minutes.
Ultimately, Medvedev took control, breaking his adversary twice, flying to pocket five games in a row, and closing out a 6-1 victory in 44 minutes to force a decider.
He won 74 percent of the first serve points while his rival won 50 percent on his.
The 2021 U.S. Open champion turned around a dramatic third set, in which Shevchenko surged to strike first, earning a 2-0 lead.
Nonetheless, he held his nerve, using his experience to break three times on his way to victory.
The man, who aims to capture his fifth title this season, won just 66 percent of the first serve points, saving 9 of the 13 break points he faced.
The former world number one launched his campaign in the Spanish city capital, moving past Italian Qualifier Andrea Vavassori in straight sets to record his 32nd win of the season without dropping serve.
For his part, Shevchenko made a successful debut in a Masters 1000 main draw, overcoming American J.J. Wolf to then take down in-form Jiri Lehecka, also in straight sets.
He finished the match with cramps, having completed an impressive debut appearance in Madrid despite today’s loss.