Daniil Medvedev disqualified in Beijing semi with Djokovic after hitting spectator with ball

Daniil Medvedev was disqualified from his China Open semi-final against Novak Djokovic (Achmad Ibrahim/AP)

Daniil Medvedev was disqualified from the China Open semi-final to leave Novak Djokovic one victory away from a first title of 2026.

Djokovic led 7-5 5-3 when his Russian opponent was defaulted for sending a backhand into the crowd and hitting a spectator.

The Serbian had gone to the well to record one of his best results of the season on Sunday when he outlasted Alexander Zverev in a thriller to extend his unbeaten record at the event to a 32nd match, beating old rival Rafael Nadal’s open-era record for a men’s event of 31 at the French Open.

Six-time China Open champion Djokovic was broken first in this semi-final tie, but hit back instantly and claimed a back-and-forth opener with a tie-break on the horizon.

After the second set began on serve, Djokovic sensed his moment and broke to move 4-2 in front before Medvedev requested a medical time-out.

Medvedev carried on but, at 15-15 with Djokovic 5-3 up, the world number five let out his frustration and sent a backhand into crowd, which hit a spectator, leading to the third seed being disqualified and sealing Djokovic’s 33rd win in Beijing and a final against Alex De Minaur.

Djokovic, who was similarly disqualified from the 2020 US Open when a ball he hit in frustration struck a line judge, told the ATP website: “A bit of a shock, to be honest.

“Sorry for the person (who was hit). I honestly didn’t see what happened. I hope that person is not badly injured.

“On the other hand, I also feel sorry for Daniil, because I know exactly how he feels to be disqualified in a big match. I was disqualified at the 2020 US Open in similar circumstances. I am sure that Daniil didn’t want to do this intentionally. It just happens.”

Elsewhere, Carlos Alcaraz earlier rallied from a set down to get the better of Jaume Munar and reach a second consecutive Japan Open final.

Defending champion Alcaraz was only on court for 83 minutes of Sunday’s quarter-final after Denis Shapovalov retired, but compatriot Munar pushed the world number three all the way a day later.

Munar won four games in a row to claim the first set against the top seed in Tokyo, but Alcaraz regrouped after an exchange of breaks at the start of the second and outlasted his opponent to clinch a 5-7 6-3 6-1 victory.

Alcaraz will face Jiri Lehecka, a 6-4 6-2 winner over eighth seed Valentin Vacherot.