Author: Barkha Roy
Daniil Medvedev reached a significant milestone at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia on Thursday, comfortably defeating German qualifier Yannick Hanfmann 6-2, 6-2 to book his place in the semi-finals in Rome for the first time. Meanwhile, sixth-ranked Elena Rybakina advanced to the semi-finals of the Internazionali BNL d’Italia after two-time champion Iga Swiatek withdrew prematurely due to a right thigh injury. The reigning Wimbledon champion now enters her first WTA 1000 semi-final on clay, with the match against Swiatek ending 2-6, 7-6(3), 2-2.
Medvedev performed surprisingly well against Hanfmann, adopting a strategy of positioning himself well behind the baseline to deal effectively with the German’s strong strokes. His exceptional shooting ability was evident when he made several impressive pass winners. Demonstrating agility and precision, the third seed showed his excellent court coverage and timed his shots impeccably, both with the forehand and the backhand, securing victory in an hour and 20 minutes.
The 27-year-old Medvedev will then face either Stefanos Tsitsipas or Borna Coric in the semi-finals on Saturday. The result of the match will determine Medvedev’s opponent in the next round.
In the women’s singles, Swiatek demonstrated her exceptional clay skills in the early stages of the match, breaking Rybakina’s serve in the first game and repeating the feat two games later, establishing a 3-0 lead with a double break. Taking her momentum into the second set, the world number one quickly broke Rybakina once again, extending her lead to 3-1. However, it was only after 6-2, 4-3 that Rybakina finally had her first break point opportunity. Seizing the moment, Rybakina took advantage of a forehand error from Swiatek, levelling the set at 4-4. Showing great resilience, Rybakina successfully defended three break points in her subsequent service game, fighting back from 15-40 down to retain her serve and take a 5-4 lead.
In the tiebreak that followed, Rybakina’s exceptional performance in tiebreaks this season was evident. Showing skill and composure, the Kazakh player executed her strategies flawlessly, extending her impressive tiebreak record to 9-1 and forcing the match into a decisive third set after a two-hour battle.
On the penultimate tiebreak point of the second set, Swiatek came out of a slide in obvious discomfort, showing visible signs of pain. As a result, she made the decision to request a medical time-out during the break of the next set. When he returned to the court, Swiatek had the upper part of his right leg tied up for support. Despite his injury, Swiatek showed admirable determination and continued to test his mobility for another four games when play resumed. However, after Rybakina managed to hold her serve to level the score at 2-2, Swiatek approached the net and extended his hand for a handshake, signifying the end of the arduous battle that had lasted 2 hours and 20 minutes.