Russian tennis star Daniil Medvedev ended his winless streak on clay as he scored a 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 victory over Alejandro Davidovich Fokina of Spain in two hours and 13 minutes at the Madrid Masters.
Medvedev, who is yet to win a match at Roland Garros, had lost his last six matches on the red dirt.
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“I am happy with the win,” said Medvedev.
“The first set wasn’t easy and I thought it was going to be where I had another 25 break points and I wouldn’t win. I finally played quite well and did well in the third set. I think Madrid is a little faster than other clay tournaments, so better for my game.”
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Medvedev, who was playing his first match since losing to Roberto Bautista Agut on 31 March at the Miami Open, improved to an 18-3 match record in 2021.
He will next face Chilean No. 16 seed Cristian Garin, who was a 6-3, 6-4 winner over Dominik Koepfer of Germany.
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Following an exchange of breaks midway through the first set, Davidovich Fokina clinched the 53-minute opener when Medvedev struck a backhand long.
Medvedev broke to lead 3-1 in the second set, before Davidovich Fokina worked his way back and led 3-3, 40/15. From there, it was all Medvedev, who reduced his error count.
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The 25-year-old finished their first ATP clash with an ace, his 19th winner, and is now 5-0 in deciding set match this season.
