Russia's Daniil Medvedev was disqualified from the China Open tennis semi-final on Monday after hitting a ball into the stands that struck a spectator in the eye, sending his Serbian opponent Novak Djokovic through to the final. The incident occurred after Medvedev lost a point, with him trailing 7-5, 5-3.
Details of Medvedev's disqualification and the penalties
The player hit a ball that bounced off the back wall and headed towards the crowd, striking a spectator seated in the front row. The spectator held his left eye before leaving the stands with the help of court staff. Medvedev, ranked fifth in the world, did not object to the decision to disqualify him. The decision also means the Russian will forfeit the points he would have earned at the tournament, as well as its prize money.
Medvedev apologised to the spectator, stressing that the injury was not intentional, and said he wanted to contact him personally to apologise and check on his condition. He explained that he had tried to hit the rebounding ball to keep it in the court, but felt terrible as soon as he saw what had happened in the stands. Djokovic said he was shocked by the incident, hoped the spectator's injury was not serious and expressed his sympathy for Medvedev.
