Daniil Medvedev kept his Italian Open hopes alive with a hard-fought 1-6, 6-4, 7-5 victory over Martin Landaluce in the quarterfinals. Despite a poor start to the match, the World No. 9 went on to make a remarkable comeback and recorded a monumental result. He has now reached his second semifinal in Rome and his first since the 2023 edition where he went on to clinch the title. However, recovering quickly from a grueling match like this is certainly not going to be easy for Medvedev.
The match went on for two hours and 22 minutes and was anything but smooth for both players. Not only did it have a long interruption but also included some brilliant shots with one of Medvedev’s winners leaving the crowd absolutely stunned.
Rain halts Medvedev’s momentum in the second set
After dropping the opening set comfortably, Daniil Medvedev finally seemed to find his rhythm in the second and moved ahead 3-2. But just as he was building momentum, rain forced play to stop, sending both players back to the locker room.
The interruption came at a rough time for the Russian, as it halted the flow he had just started to build. Fortunately for him, the delay lasted only around 14 minutes, and play resumed soon after.
Interestingly, many fans who had moved away to take cover from the rain didn’t even realize the match had already restarted by the time both players were back on court.
Medvedev didn’t let the delay affect his composure and claimed the second set to level up the match. Landaluce then made a strong start to the deciding set and broke early to take a 3-2 lead. But Medvedev fought back brilliantly and put the pressure right back on the Spaniard during his next service game. He went on to get the important break through an insane shot that Landaluce had no answer to.
Medvedev leaves Landaluce stunned with a sensational return
With a break point under his belt, Medvedev hit an incredible backhand return that turned out to be a winner and levelled up the set 3-3. This was the point where the momentum shifted towards the 30-year-old and he would go on to get another break before wrapping up the set later on.
Daniil Medvedev hits an AMAZING backhand return against Landaluce in Rome.
From so far off the court… this is just classic Daniil.
Simply too good.
pic.twitter.com/XIaeu9iQTb
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) May 14, 2026
It was easily the best shot of the match and likely one of the best shots that Medvedev has played in the clay swing so far. The result saw the Russian improve his performance on clay and now he has a good chance of reaching his fourth final of the year.
The victory also saw Medvedev reach the 18th Masters semifinal of his career, which sees him equal the current World No. 1 on an elite list.
Daniil Medvedev equals Jannik Sinner following the impressive result
Medvedev and Jannik Sinner have now reached 18 Masters semifinals in their respective careers. Notably, Alexander Zverev and Novak Djokovic are the only two active players who have made it to more semis than the Russian.
After his victory over Landaluce, Medvedev admitted that he could have played better in the first set but was satisfied with his efforts in the next two sets.
“I think I played the last two matches great. First set today of course I could play better because I lost it 6-1. At the same time, I don’t think I had much to do there. And third set really high level. Especially at the end. I felt like I got a bit unlucky and could be more decisive to win before. But I love the way I was playing. Looking forward,” he said during his post-match interview.
Medvedev now has a big task in front of him as he will be facing Sinner in the semifinals of the Italian Open. The Italian reached the stage after defeating Andrey Rublev 6-2, 6-4 in the quarterfinals. He is yet to lose a set in the tournament and is on a 27-match winning streak. Not to mention that the crowd in Rome will undoubtedly be on his side as he aims to win his home event for the first time.
Will Sinner continue to dominate at the Italian Open and reach his second consecutive final of the tournament, or will Medvedev go on to end his winning streak in their upcoming clash? Drop your predictions in the comments!
