Beijing

Medvedev shows signs of Beijing revival as Zverev QF awaits

Zverev survives Moutet in three; Musetti sets Tien QF at Chinese ATP 500 event

September 28, 2025

Daniil Medvedev’s 2025 campaign has been anything but smooth, yet if there is a stage where his fortunes might shift, it could well be the China Open.

The 29-year-old brushed aside Alejandro Davidovich Fokina 6-3, 6-3 on Sunday afternoon in Beijing, sealing his spot in a third straight quarter-final at the ATP 500 event. Though Medvedev stands with a modest 29-19 record this year by his lofty standards, the 2023 finalist remains focused on rediscovering the edge that once carried him to No. 1 in the PIF ATP Rankings.

“Maybe the feeling of the game, the general awareness [which I have been] lacking lately,” Medvedev reflected when asked what qualities he would borrow from his 2023 self. “I’m trying to get that back, and that’s also why I’m happy today. To win many return games, you need to react fast on the return, run faster on the next shot. Everything needs to be better, but it’s not too bad.”

After his first-round defeat at the US Open last month, Medvedev parted ways with his coach of eight years, Gilles Cervara, and has now been working with Thomas Johansson and Rohan Goetzke. Competing as the World No. 18 — his lowest mark since January 2019 — Medvedev will next meet second seed Alexander Zverev, who rallied from a break down in the deciding set to overcome Corentin Moutet 7-5, 3-6, 6-3.

Moutet, competing at a career-high World No. 37, lured Zverev in with his trademark variety and unpredictability before landing 40 winners across their two-hour, 38-minute battle. But Zverev fought back with a determined final-set display, during which he won six of the next eight games from 0-1, to keep his title hopes alive.

“He plays good, there’s no secret about it,” Zverev said of Moutet. “The way he played in the summer and how much he improved was phenomenal. He’s a very tricky opponent so I’m happy to be through.”

Watch Zverev survive Moutet’s 40 winners: 

“I didn’t feel good physically again today, I had some pain,” said Zverev, who had an injection in his back prior to his Beijing campaign. “I was a bit down on myself at times because of that, but when it mattered, I fought and in the third set, I thought I played the best tennis.”

Having won seven of their past eight meetings, Medvedev will take a 13-7 Lexus ATP Head2Head lead over Zverev into their clash in Beijing. The German, however, is also someone with a proven track record in the Chinese capital: He is a three-time semi-finalist and owns a 14-5 tournament record, according to the Infosys ATP Win/Loss Index.

Medvedev, the former Nitto ATP Finals champion, is up one spot to 21st in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin, but he could jump as high as 14th if he captures the title in Beijing. It would mark his first trophy since the 2023 ATP Masters 1000 in Rome.

Earlier, fourth seed Lorenzo Musetti continued to bounce back from his Chengdu final heartbreak by setting a Beijing quarter-final meeting with #NextGenATP Learner Tien.

Musetti, who is seventh in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin, moved past qualifier Adrian Mannarino 6-3, 6-3 to strengthen his push for a maiden Nitto ATP Finals qualification. The 19-year-old Tien upset Flavio Cobolli 6-3, 6-2 to reach his fifth ATP Tour quarter-final (0-4).