The legend of world tennis Novak Djokovic qualified for his seventh final of the ATP 500 tournament in Beijing after a dramatic and scandalous development of his semi-final clash against Daniil Medvedev. The Serbian veteran won the first set 7:5 and was leading 5:3 and 15:15 in the second when he served for the final victory. At that moment, an unrestrained reaction of the former world number 1 led to his official disqualification.
Frustrated by the development of the match and another play, Medvedev lost his temper and furiously fired a “dead ball” directly into the spectators' stands. The ball hit a fan in the face, in the eye area, requiring emergency medical intervention after the injured man remained on the ground for several minutes. In accordance with the strict ATP rules for endangering the safety of the audience, the chair umpire and the supervisor immediately decided to give the Russian a forfeit.
The automatic victory extended the incredible streak of 39-year-old Djokovic in the Chinese capital to 33 consecutive victories. The six-time champion in Beijing will argue for the trophy against fifth-seeded Alex de Minaur of Australia, who secured a place in the final after Hubert Hurkacz withdrew.