BEIJING — Daniil Medvedev was defaulted from his China Open semi-final against Novak Djokovic on Monday in Beijing after swiping a ball into the stands that hit a spectator in the face, a violation that will cost the Russian all of his prize money and ranking points from the tournament.
Djokovic was serving for a place in the final when the ball ricocheted off the back of the court and Medvedev swiped it into the stands. A few minutes later he was defaulted, as he had to be, under rules that bar a player from "hitting a ball dangerously or recklessly, or with negligent disregard of the consequences." The 30-year-old has apologized and said he hopes to say sorry to the spectator in person.
"I can only say I'm a really calm person in life - I actually have no idea why the demons go out when I play tennis," Medvedev said at the 2019 US Open, where he was fined for snatching a towel from a ball person and making an offensive gesture to fans inside Arthur Ashe Stadium. "Especially when I was a junior, I had a lot of problems with my attitude. I was not getting defaulted, but to have a game penalty was easy." At that year's ATP Finals he added: "All my temper goes away after I leave the tennis court. If I'm not happy with my practice, I step out of the court and five minutes later, I'm OK."
Medvedev has made a habit of arguing with umpires and taunting crowds. At Wimbledon in 2017, the then 21-year-old sprinkled coins at umpire Mariana Alves' feet after a second-round loss, later apologizing and denying he was accusing her of bias. Two years ago at Wimbledon he escaped default after an outburst toward umpire Eva Asderaki-Moore, claiming he said something in Russian which was "not pleasant, but not over the line" and receiving only a code violation for unsportsmanlike conduct after a discussion between the umpire, supervisor and tournament referee. He was fined more than £60,000 for his behavior at the 2025 Australian Open, which included trying to destroy a net camera.
His infamous meltdown at the 2025 US Open came in the first round against Benjamin Bonzi, when Bonzi had match point for a straight-set win and a photographer walked onto court between serves. Umpire Greg Allensworth awarded Bonzi another first serve, prompting Medvedev to accuse Allensworth of trying to engineer a quick finish because he gets paid by the match, rather than the hour, and to whip up the crowd during a pause of more than five minutes. Medvedev saved match point but lost in five sets before smashing his racquet repeatedly against the table next to his chair. He will now lose the 200 points earned in Beijing but remains in the eighth and final qualifying spot for November's ATP Finals, a margin that could yet prove crucial. The incident follows Djokovic's reaction after the Beijing semi ended in default.