Daniil Medvedev in demonstration face to Roberto Bautista Agut in the quarterfinals of the Open d’Astana

At the time of the draw, the organizers of the Astana Open were rubbing their hands at the idea of ​​a semi-final between Daniil Medvedev and Novak Djokovic. Thursday, the concern was still installed because Roberto Bautista Agut had the profile of the perfect obstacle to go around in circles. In addition, the Spaniard was largely leading in his face-to-face with the Russian (4-1 before this match). But Daniil Medvedev is a well-behaved boy and he hastened to reassure everyone (6-1, 6-1).

From the first exchanges, we felt that he was totally focused on his objective. Untouchable on his baseline, he offered no opening to a Bautista Agut quickly running out of solutions. The 22nd in the world tried to break the pace, especially with cushioning, but Medvedev was on his feet and was going to get everything. Protected by impeccable service (93% of first serves in this first set and 91% of points behind), he won the first set by making a very strong impression.

Medvedev’s fastest win of the season

In the second set, Medvedev was not going to change pace. We even had the impression that he was having fun on the court as in this long exchange where he tried to stay on his opponent’s backhand until he cracked and broke away 4-0. Overwhelmed, Bautista Agut had the merit of not letting go. He managed to erase a break to come back to 4-1, but it was only a burst of pride. Behind a heroic defense, Medvedev resumed his opponent’s service (5-1). The conclusion was only a formality and the Russian signed his fastest victory of the season in 1h04. Novak Djokovic is warned.