Jiri Lehecka reached his first Masters 1000 semifinal after Danil Medvedev retired from the quarter final match at the Madrid Mutua Open due to a groin injury.
Medvedev received treatment on his right upper leg when he was leading 3-2 in the first set. The Russian player had trouble moving to his right, and received treatment on court two games later at 4-3. Medvedev continued to struggle to move after coming back to the court. Lehecka broke serve in the ninth game en route to winning the first set, before Medvedev retired from the match.
Lehecka will face Felix Auger Aliassime, who advanced via walkover after Jannik Sinner retired from the match due to a hip injury.
Lehecka and Auger Aliassime are currently ranked at number 31 and number 35 in the ATP Ranking. This is the first time that two players ranked outside the top 20 have reached the semifinal at a Masters 1000 tournament since the 2023 edition of the Madrid Mutua Open.
“It’s never easy in a match like this. If I were to choose the way how to win this match, it would not be like that. It’s never easy to see your opponent struggling, but at the moment, you just need to focus on yourself, trying to get the maximum level out of yourself”, said Lehecka.
Medvedev completed his sweep on all nine Masters 1000 quarter final appearances.
Andrey Rublev will face Taylor Fritz in the other semifinal.
