ATP Tour

Medvedev continues Almaty title defence, Tsitsipas reaches SFs

Defending Almaty Open champion Daniil Medvedev extended his winning streak to six matches at the ATP 250 event on Friday, when he eliminated Frenchman Terence Atmane 6-4, 6-4 to reach the semi-finals.

Medvedev ended an 882-day wait for a title at the indoor tournament last year but arrived in Almaty this week chasing his fourth trophy of a productive 2026. The top seed produced a controlled display against Atmane, keeping the 24-year-old at arm’s length throughout with his depth, while he went after his forehand, striking 13 winners off that wing.

“It is not easy to play against Terence,” Medvedev said. “Big serve, big shots. I had to stay in the match and found some good passing shots and good winners.”

Medvedev has earned a Tour-leading 36 hard-court wins this year, with all three of his titles in 2026 coming on the surface (Brisbane, Dubai, Hangzhou). Medvedev’s latest victory has further increased his Nitto ATP Finals qualification chances.

The former champion at the year-end event is sixth in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin, currently 640 points ahead of 10th-placed Alex de Minaur, who is the first player outside the qualification cut. De Minaur is not in action this week.

Medvedev will next face third seed Alexander Bublik or fifth seed Karen Khachanov in Almaty.

Earlier, Stefanos Tsitsipas reached his second semi-final of the season and first on hard courts since February 2025. The seventh-seeded Greek defeated Australian James Duckworth 6-3, 6-4 in just 73 minutes.

Tsitsipas, who leads Duckworth 2-0 in the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Head series, will next meet Nikoloz Basilashvili after the Georgian qualifier dropped just four games in his 6-3, 6-1 triumph against Adrian Mannarino.