DANIIL Medvedev was knocked out in the fourth round of Indian Wells by Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov on Wednesday (Thursday in Manila) as the world No. 2’s near-flawless start turned nightmarish in a 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 defeat.
Medvedev broke Dimitrov’s serve to open the match, easing through a near-perfect first set in which he won all but four of his first-serve points and fired off three aces with just five unforced errors.
The Russian, who won his maiden major title at the US Open last month, was up two breaks in the second set and seemingly on track for an easy victory.
But Dimitrov came roaring back, winning five games in a row to wrest control of the momentum as Medvedev unraveled, converting on break point to close out the second set, before winning another three games in a row to open the third. — Reuters
