New week, same result.
Six days after Daniil Medvedev defeated Ilya Ivashka in ‘s-Hertogenbosch, he earned the same outcome on Thursday at the Terra Wortmann Open in Halle.
Top seed Medvedev came through another tough opening set against the World No. 42, but ultimately proved too strong as he sealed a 7-6(4), 6-3 victory at the ATP 500 event in north-west Germany.
Medvedev was pleased to prevail in another high-quality clash with Ivashka, who was aiming to reach his fourth quarter-final of the season on the Halle grass.
“He is a great player,” said Medvedev after he improved his lead in the pair’s ATP Head2Head series to 3-1. “He had a lot of bad luck with injuries at the beginning of the season. At the end of last season he was playing really great tennis.
“I’ve known him since I was very young, we actually played [each other] in Futures, Challengers, and on the ATP Tour. He beat me once in Davis Cup, which is a really important tournament. So he knows how to play tennis, he knows how to play well on grass, so I’m really happy that two times in a row I managed to pass a tough test.”
It was by no means plain sailing for the World No. 1. Ivashka showed intent from the start in OWL Arena, striking cleanly through the ball to hurry his opponent. Yet just as in his opening-round win against David Goffin, Medvedev’s ability to find big serves at key moments proved crucial. He fended off three set points at 4-5 to stay in the opening set before going onto to clinch it in a tie-break.
Things were more comfortable for Medvedev in the second set, when a series of finely-crafted passing shots were the highlight as he wrapped up a one-hour, 36-minute victory to improve his career record on grass to 30-15.
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Medvedev next faces seventh seed Roberto Bautista Agut or qualifier Tallon Griekspoor in his maiden quarter-final appearance in Halle. Despite reclaiming the No. 1 spot in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings on Monday, Medvedev has not changed his approach stepping out on court in Germany as he seeks his second tour-level title on grass, even if his opponents might.
“I think it will depend on the player and the match, and on my level also,” he said when asked whether his opponents were likely to raise their game when facing the top-ranked player in the world. “Some are going to be a little bit intimidated that they are playing the World No. 1 and they have a tough draw. If they lose, maybe it is nothing special.
“And some on the contrary. Maybe they don’t have the best confidence at the moment and if they beat the World No. 1, that is where it starts.
“My goal is every time I go on the court just to be the best player possible, and if my opponent wins, congrats, and let’s go for the next one.”
Source Tennis – ATP World Tour
