Medvedev cruises into semis in Dubai

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Daniil Medvedev raced to victory over Alejandro Davidovich Fokina on Thursday to reach the Dubai semifinals and continue his excellent start to the year.

The world number four wasted little time in wrapping up a 6-2, 6-3 win and will face Ugo Humbert in the last four.

“Alejandro can play very well,” Medvedev said. “Sometimes during matches he can have a little down moment and then he goes up.

“I knew that no matter the score, I needed to go until the last point.”

The Russian is playing in just his second tournament of the season after reaching the Australian Open final, where he suffered an agonizing defeat by Jannik Sinner after leading by two sets.

Reigning champion Medvedev is bidding to defend an ATP title for the first time, having won 20 trophies at Tour-level events in his career but all at different tournaments.

Medvedev eased through the opening set with breaks in the sixth and eighth games.

He powered into a 4-0 lead in the second and sealed victory on his first match point.

Fifth-seeded Humbert of France saved three match points in the second-set tie-break on his way to a 3-6, 7-6 (10/8), 6-3 victory against third seed Hubert Hurkacz of Poland.

Humbert, who hit 24 winners, had also defeated Hurkacz en route to the title in Marseille earlier this month.

Alexander Bublik and Andrey Rublev will meet in the other semifinal after both were beneficiaries of retirements in their last-eight matches.

Kazakhstan’s Bublik led 6-4, 4-1 when his opponent Jiri Lehecka quit their tie with injury.

Second seed Rublev was 6-4, 4-3 ahead when American Sebastian Korda left the court in the second quarter-final.

The win ended a run of three successive quarterfinal exits for world number five Rublev.