By Richard Pagliaro | Friday, October 16, 2026
Photo credit: Screen Shot
Instability and an inspired Tommy Paul sent Daniil Medvedev into a four-game free fall.
Medvedev responded by imposing the squeeze play to advance to the Shanghai semifinals.
Extorting errors with confident strikes, Medvedev topped Paul 6-3, 1-6, 6-3 rising into his 70th career semifinal at the Rolex Shanghai Masters.
Hangzhou champion Medvedev raised his 2026 record to 45-17, including an 11-1 run during this Asian swing. It is the 19th ATP Masters 1000 semifinal for Medvedev, equaling Tomas Berdych and Lleyton Hewitt for ninth place in most semifinals in Masters 1000 history.
“I feel like it was a very tight set. The first game, I think I saved three break points, and he managed to break me,” Medvedev said. “I went for the second serve, missed it, whatever, it can happen.
“Then I have a break point. Then I have a break point at 2-1. And then, when it was 4-1 double break, I was like, Okay, you know what, better regroup and get ready for the third set. So at this point, you know, if I would break back I would try, but I was just going for it.
“But I’m happy that in the third set I managed to step up on my serve, be solid, and that was the key.”
Dropping the second set, Medvedev took a bathroom break then return to court reeling off eight of the first nine points of the final set surging to a 2-0 lead. Paul betrayed his own cause serving just 47 percent and committing 17 of his 37 unforced errors in the final set.
Credit Medvedev for creating havoc, frequently forcing Paul to hit one more shot in defeating the American for the fifth time in six meetings. Medvedev won 16 of 20 points played on his serve in the final set.
“I think today I was a tiny bit off from time to time,” Medvedev said in his on-court interview. “The third set was great. Even second set, the score was 6-1, but I made him work.
“The score was 6-1, but he had to really work hard to win the second set. I managed to regroup and play great in the third set.”
The 2019 champion Medvedev is the only former Shanghai champion still standing in the draw.
The 30-year-old Medvedev will meet Spanish sensation Rafael Jodar for a place in the final.
The 20-year-old Jodar made history as the youngest Shanghai semifinalist with his 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 victory over Casper Ruud in today’s opening quarterfinal. Jodar advanced to his fifth Tour-level semifinal of the season—and first since the final four of Montreal.
The hard-hitting Jodar joins compatriot Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the semifinals marking the third time in tournament history two Spanish men have made the final four, after Rafael Nadal and Feliciano Lopez in 2009 and David Ferrer and Lopez in 2011.
It will be the first meeting between Jodar, whose father and coach was scouting the former No. 1’s win over Paul, and Medvedev.
“First of all he has a great game,” Medvedev said of Jodar. “He hits very strong. So it will be fun to face him and feel it.
“As I said last time: if I;m playing well, I’m tough to beat and that’s what I’m going to try to do.”
Applying his variety, Paul tried the delayed serve-and-volley, but bumped a short volley into net to face double set point.
When Paul sailed a forehand, Medvedev sealed the 43-minute opener on his second break of the match.
World No. 18 Paul, who was bidding to join Sebastian Korda and Taylor Fritz as only the third American semifinalist in tournament history, turned the tables in the second set.
Medvedev went all in on a big second serve, but missed it long as Paul broke to start the second set.
The sliding, spinning one-handed backhand is one of Paul’s signature shots when on defense. Paul used that to extend the point and earned two more break points in the fifth game. When Medvedev missed a forehand down the line, Paul broke again for a 4-1 lead.
When Paul wasn’t pressing the action at net, he delivered some accurate passing shots. Paul pumped a backhand pass by Medvedev for a set point in the sixth game. Medvedev missed a forehand as Paul scored his third break of the set to force a final set after one hour, 23 minutes of play.
By then, Medvedev had won just six of 24 second-serve points and Paul seemed to have momentum.
Medvedev took a bathroom break then came back to change the tenor of the match. Paul framed a forehand error then dragged a rally crosscourt backhand wide to cede the opening break of the final set to Medvedev.
Serving down break point in the seventh game, Paul caught a big break when Medvedev netted a relatively routine mid-court backhand pass. Paul pumped an ace and used a slick-angled backhand volley off the net-cord that helped him hold for 3-4.
Trying to finish points with his forehand, Paul hit himself into problems sending a forehand long to face a second match point. A crackling 21-shot rally ended with Paul netting a drive. Medvedev closed a two-hour, eight-minute victory
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