Daniil Medvedev Keeps His Word and Visits Fan in Hospital After China Open Default

Daniil Medvedev has reportedly kept his promise to personally apologise to the spectator he accidentally struck in the face with a tennis ball, visiting the injured fan in hospital following his China Open semi-final default.

The Russian had been defaulted in Beijing on Monday, 5 October, after hitting a rebounding ball into the crowd while trailing Novak Djokovic 7-5, 5-3 in their semi-final.

The ball struck a front-row spectator around the left eye. He appeared to be in pain and was helped from the stands by tournament staff before being taken to hospital.

Medvedev Keeps His Promise

Medvedev, 30, made clear immediately after the match that his main concern was the spectator and said he was attempting to contact him.

'Terribly sorry to the spectator, first of all,' Medvedev told reporters. 'I'm trying to get in touch with him, if he wants it.'

He added that he hoped to apologise personally and check how the spectator was feeling.

Medvedev subsequently followed through on that promise by visiting the spectator in hospital, where Spazio Tennis reported he was able to meet the fan and apologise in person.

Medvedev had described striking the spectator as '100 per cent' accidental and stressed that he had never intended to hit anyone.

The ball had rebounded towards him after Djokovic's winner before Medvedev swiped it into the stands.

'When I saw the result, I mean, I felt horrible,' he said, adding that his main concern was whether the spectator was OK.

Djokovic Advances After Shock Default

The incident occurred with Djokovic serving for the match and leading 7-5, 5-3.
After the ball struck the spectator, chair umpire Mohamed Lahyani consulted an ATP official before Medvedev was defaulted. The Russian did not protest the decision and shook hands with Djokovic at the net.

The disqualification sent Djokovic directly into the China Open final and ended Medvedev's tournament one match short of a potential title appearance.

Medvedev also forfeited the ranking points and prize money he would otherwise have earned at the tournament because of the default.

The punishment made the incident particularly costly for Medvedev, who had been within touching distance of another tournament final before the match abruptly ended.

Instead of having the opportunity to fight back against Djokovic, his Beijing campaign finished at the net, leaving the Russian to deal with both the sporting consequences and concern over the spectator he had unintentionally struck that afternoon.

Djokovic said he was 'shocked' by what happened and expressed concern for the spectator.

The Serbian also sympathised with Medvedev, having experienced a similar situation himself when he was defaulted from the 2020 US Open after accidentally striking a line judge with a ball.
'I'm sure that Daniil didn't want to do this intentionally,' Djokovic said.

Medvedev's Apology Goes Face To Face

For Medvedev, the immediate consequence was losing his chance to reach the Beijing final, but his comments afterwards focused overwhelmingly on the person struck by the ball.

He acknowledged that the outcome looked serious despite saying there had been no intention to hit anyone.

The incident left the Russian facing one of the most unusual endings of his career, with a single swipe at a rebounding ball turning a high-profile semi-final against Djokovic into an immediate default.

But his response did not end with his public apology. After saying he wanted to find the spectator and apologise personally, Medvedev followed through by visiting him in hospital, turning his post-match promise into a face-to-face meeting.