Russian tennis player Daniil Medvedev was disqualified from his China Open semifinal against Novak Djokovic on Monday after hitting a rebounding ball into the crowd and striking a spectator in the eye.
Medvedev was trailing Djokovic 7-5, 5-3 when the incident occurred. Having already lost the point, the world No. 5 hit the ball after it rebounded off the wall, sending it into the stands.
Spectator Receives Assistance
The spectator, who was seated in the first row, immediately clutched his left eye and appeared to be in pain.
Stadium staff assisted the spectator as he left the gallery following the incident. The match was subsequently stopped, with Medvedev disqualified from the semifinal.
Djokovic Expresses Concern
Djokovic said he was shocked by what happened and expressed hope that the spectator had not suffered a serious injury.
The Serbian also sympathised with Medvedev, recalling his own experience of being disqualified from the 2020 US Open under similar circumstances.
Djokovic said he understood how difficult it was to be disqualified from an important match and believed Medvedev had not intended to hit the spectator.
Both men’s singles semifinals in Beijing ended before the matches could be completed.
Earlier on Monday, Hubert Hurkacz retired from his semifinal against Australian Alex de Minaur because of an adductor injury.
De Minaur was leading 6-4, 3-2 when Hurkacz, who had struggled with his movement throughout the contest, was forced to retire.
Two Semifinals Disrupted by Incidents
The unusual end to Medvedev’s match and Hurkacz’s retirement meant that neither China Open semifinal reached its natural conclusion.
While Djokovic advanced after Medvedev’s disqualification, de Minaur progressed after Hurkacz was unable to continue because of his injury.