Players accused of doping offered financial help
Players involved in doping or corruption investigations will be able to receive financial assistance in a new trial launched by the International Tennis Integrity Agency.
Players involved in doping or corruption investigations will be able to receive financial assistance in a new trial launched by the International Tennis Integrity Agency.
Daniil Medvedev dug deep to avoid a repeat disappointment against Learner Tien on the hard courts of China with a dramatic Wednesday-night win at the Rolex Shanghai Masters.
The 29-year-old recovered from a bout of cramp late in the second set to overcome #NextGenATP American Tien 7-6(6), 6-7(1), 6-4 in an engrossing encounter at the ATP Masters 1000 event. Just eight days after Medvedev was forced to retire from the deciding set of the pair’s semi-final in Beijing due to cramp, the former No. 1 in the PIF ATP Rankings was this time able to ward off his physical struggles and rouse a late charge to victory.
Meddy’s Moment! 👏@DaniilMedwed outlasts Tien (7-6 6-7 6-4) in an EPIC encounter to advance into the Shanghai quarter-finals@SH_RolexMasters | #RolexShanghaiMasterspic.twitter.com/Ah3jbLrNUs
— ATP Tour (@atptour) October 8, 2025
“I think the toughest part was that we played two times [before], and in my opinion he is an unbelievable player, because he doesn’t have a great serve and serve is so important in tennis,” said Medvedev. “Without the serve, he is 19 years old and 30-something in the world and only going up. In my opinion he is such a good tennis player.
“He feels the game so well. There are so many guys right now that just hit strong with every ball they have, and they have an amazing serve which allows them to stay in the tennis match. He doesn’t have it, and he manages to play so good without it. For me to beat him… I thought I was going to lose. I was cramping again and I’m just super happy to manage to do it.”
In a topsy-turvy two-hour, 53-minute encounter, Medvedev failed to serve out the first set at 5-4 before prevailing in a tie-break, and then carved out a 3-0 lead in the second. Yet Tien roared back and won the second set in a tie-break during which Medvedev was nearly completely immobilised due to the cramps in his right leg.
The 2019 Shanghai champion Medvedev appeared out of contention at that point, but his body loosened after the changeover between sets and he produced some typically robust tennis into the decider. Despite regularly chuntering to himself in a frustrated fashion throughout, Medvedev decisively broke serve in the ninth game before serving out to earn his first victory in three Lexus ATP Head2Head meetings with the 19-year-old Tien.
All three of Medvedev and Tien’s meetings have proven dramatic. At the Australian Open, Tien prevailed in a five-set thriller that ended just before 3 a.m. local time, while the pair’s Beijing and Shanghai clashes have been dominated by Medvedev’s battles with his body.
Now into his third Masters 1000 quarter-final of the season (Indian Wells, Madrid), Medvedev will next face seventh seed Alex de Minaur, who earlier defeated Nuno Borges 7-5, 6-2 to book his spot in the last eight.
[NEWSLETTER FORM]Felix Auger-Aliassime produced a clinical display in a high-stakes fourth-round showdown Wednesday at the Rolex Shanghai Masters.
The 12th seed eased past Lorenzo Musetti 6-4, 6-2 to reach the quarter-finals at the Chinese ATP Masters 1000 event. Auger-Aliassime converted three of six points he earned in his 85-minute victory inside Qizhong Forest Sports City Arena, where he will on Friday take on Arthur Rinderknech in the last eight.
Another chapter written 📚📷@felixtennis becomes the first Canadian to reach the final eight in Shanghai, a 60th career quarter-final for Felix@SH_RolexMasters
| #RolexShanghaiMasters pic.twitter.com/4jeZGJ7vbQ— ATP Tour (@atptour) October 8, 2025
[That was] ’inspired Felix’ I guess,” said Auger-Aliassime, when asked to describe his performance. “I felt like I was playing fast, but I was seeing the game slow. It’s weird when you get these kinds of nights.
“I’ve been trying to work my way there obviously for a while now, working on this type of game plan, but to execute it live on a match court at this stage against an opponent like this is a different story to practice. I’m very pleased, because to play like this means things are coming along nicely.”
Wednesday’s encounter between eighth seed Musetti and Auger-Aliassime held big implications in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin, with the eighth-placed Musetti having the opportunity to widen the gap between himself and 10th-placed Auger-Aliassime. Yet by sinking Musetti for his fifth win against a Top 10 opponent in 2025, the 10th-placed Auger-Aliassime has moved to within 530 points of his rival as both players vie for a Nitto ATP Finals spot.
Prior to Shanghai, Auger-Aliassime reached the Cincinnati quarter-finals and the US Open semi-finals. The Canadian brought similar form to his clash in China with Musetti, in which he fired 24 winners, including seven aces, to his opponent’s 11.
The 25-year-old also saved all three break points he faced, according to Infosys ATP Stats, and he has now held in 28 of 29 service games across his three matches in Shanghai so far. After avenging his defeats in his two previous meetings with Musetti (Paris 2024 Olympics, Miami 2025), Auger-Aliassime has levelled the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Head series at 4-4.
[NEWSLETTER FORM]The family WhatsApp group for Arthur Rinderknech and Valentin Vacherot has been busy during the Rolex Shanghai Masters. Frenchman Rinderknech and Vacherot of Monaco are cousins and are both into the quarter-finals at an ATP Masters 1000 tournament for the first time.
On Wednesday, Rinderknech defeated his third seeded opponent in the tournament, taking out Jiri Lehecka 6-3, 7-5, joining his cousin in the quarter-finals. Vacherot beat Tallon Griekspoor in three sets on Tuesday night.
“Our family WhatsApp group is buzzing a lot the past few days,” said Rinderknech, who signed the courtside camera lens ‘I follow you Val’ with a heart emoji after his latest win. “I can’t complain, it’s great and it’s reuniting the family together, at least online, having some fun. Everybody’s watching each other. So it’s really cool.”
Vacherot’s coach is half-brother Benjamin Balleret, who also played on the ATP Tour and reached a career-high No. 204 in the PIF ATP Rankings in June 2006. Balleret says there’s a lot of excitement from both families back home.
“There are 20, 25 people in the WhatsApp group,” said Balleret. “Everybody loves tennis and the mother of Arthur played tennis. My mother played, our mother with Val was a tennis coach. Everybody loves tennis and follows and they supported me when I was playing, now [it is the same] for Val and Arthur. It is basically almost all now only about tennis and where the next holidays will be and how it will be.”
Rinderknech is 6-3 vs. Top 20 opponents since June, after going 0-16 from the start of the 2023 season up until June. He defeated 28th seed Alex Michelsen in the second round and third seed Alexander Zverev in the third round. It’s the first time Rinderknech has registered multiple Top 20 wins in a tournament in his career.
“My serve was good today and I am really glad,” said Rinderknech, who will improve from No. 54 to No. 43 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings, just one spot from his career-high of No. 42 on October 31, 2022. “I knew it was going to be important against a player like Jiri, because he’s really good on serve as well. So the serve was going to be really important. I came out a bit on fire today and it was a good match and being able to close in two sets, that was important and really happy about it.”
World No. 204 Vacherot qualified and he is the first player from Monaco to advance to an ATP Masters 1000 quarter-final and the lowest-ranked quarter-finalist in tournament history (since 2009). He’s also only the third qualifier to reach the quarter-finals in Shanghai, joining Matthew Ebden (2011) and Mischa Zverev (2016).
“He’s playing good tennis this week and has been playing great tennis for few years now,” Rinderknech said on Vacherot. “He just battled a few injuries, but whenever he’s playing he’s always doing great, so just a matter of time for him. I’m really happy and glad that he’s showing his best tennis this week. I hope and I think that’s only the beginning for him.”
Vacherot, who plays 10th seed Holger Rune on Thursday, reached a career-high No. 110 in June last year but a right shoulder injury sidelined him for the second half of last year.
“He couldn’t serve or hit a forehand,” said Balleret. “We were almost scared at some point that he couldn’t play tennis for even two years or something. We tried many things and he actually tried to play at the US Open qualies but he played one match, and in the second match he retired in the second set. So it was a tough moment.”
The 26-year-old Monaco native is playing in only his second tour-level event of the season after reaching the second round on home soil at the Rolex Monte Carlo Masters in April. That was also his first career main draw in an ATP Masters 1000 tournament. He is 22-16 on the ATP Challenger Tour with his best result a runner-up in Francavilla al Mare, Italy in May.
Vacherot has jumped from No. 204 to No. 130 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings and with a win against Rune, he will join his cousin in the Top 100 for the first time at No. 92.
“I don’t think I could realise what I was doing this whole week, and it kind of all just hit me when I just won that match,” said Vacherot after his fourth round win. “Generally I was happy this whole week, but not like through the roof. This one is unbelievable, so much emotions. Just thinking of the tough times I had last year, even this year, and just to share that with my coach, brother, and my girlfriend, it’s just unbelievable. I’m having one of the best times of my life.”
Rinderknech and Vacherot were college teammates at Texas A&M University for two and a half years in 2016-17 and the first half of 2018. They were also doubles partners on occasion.
“I recruited him to College Station,” said Rinderknech. “I was there two years ahead of him, and we had two and a half years I think in common. It was a great time together and we spent so many days doing many things and having a lot of fun, so it was really cool to be together in the same team and same place for a few years.”
Now the former college teammates will be watching each other in Shanghai along with their families back home.
[NEWSLETTER FORM]Aryna Sabalenka overcomes a rusty start in Wuhan as she fights back to beat Rebecca Sramkova in her first appearance since winning the US Open.
Alex de Minaur recorded his 50th tour-level victory of the season on Wednesday at the Rolex Shanghai Masters, where he moved past Nuno Borges 7-5, 6-2 to reach his seventh ATP Masters 1000 quarter-final.
De Minaur is just the third man to hit the 50-win mark in 2025, joining Carlos Alcaraz (67) and Taylor Fritz (50), with the Australian earning a Tour-leading 37 victories on hard courts. Playing with confidence and controlled aggression against Borges, De Minaur struck 19 winners to just 10 unforced errors en route to a one-hour, 47-minute triumph in the pair’s first Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting.
De Minaur’s previous best season in 2024 culminated in 47 wins and two titles, according to the Infosys ATP Win/Loss Index. Having lifted the trophy at the ATP 500 event in Washington in August, the 26-year-old is chasing his second title of the year in Shanghai, where he will next meet Daniil Medvedev or #NextGenATP American Learner Tien.
De Minaur arrived in Shanghai off the back of a semi-final showing in Beijing and his latest run is further improving his Nitto ATP Finals qualification chances. The 10-time tour-level champion is seventh in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin, 740 points clear of 10th-placed Felix Auger-Aliassime, who is the first player outside the Top 8 cut due to ninth-placed Jack Draper being sidelined for the rest of the year with injury.
De Minaur, who made his debut at the prestigious year-end event in 2024, would rise to fourth in the Live Race if he captures his maiden Masters 1000 title in Shanghai.
Earlier, Arthur Rinderknech backed up his win against World No. 3 Alexander Zverev by defeating Jiri Lehecka 6-3, 7-6(5) to reach his maiden Masters 1000 quarter-final. The Frenchman, who is up to No. 43 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings, has joined his cousin Valentin Vacherot in the last eight. Following his win, Rinderknech wrote a message of support for qualifier Vacherot, who is the first Monegasque player to reach a tour-level quarter-final in history.
After facing high temperatures on the Asian swing of the tennis tours, some players are questioning the sport’s heat policies.
Tested by heat, a leg issue and sheer exhaustion, Novak Djokovic described his fourth-round battle against Jaume Munar as a “tough day at the office” at the Rolex Shanghai Masters, where the Serbian dug into his deepest reserves to advance.
Pushed to his physical limits in heavy humidity, the Serbian vomited courtside on several occasions and fell to the floor after losing the second set, prompting medical support. He routinely sought relief with ice towels throughout the two-hour, 41-minute clash. Djokovic also took multiple medical timeouts for a leg issue, but again summoned his trademark resilience.
Following his spirited 6-3, 5-7, 6-2 victory against Spaniard Jaume Munar, Djokovic took to social media to reflect on the physical toll of the match.
“Tough day at the office. Very challenging physically,” Djokovic wrote. “Luckily, I have the greatest support in the world. 🫶🏼. 我爱上海”
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With his win, Djokovic set a new record. At 38 years and four months, the Serbian is now the oldest ATP Masters 1000 quarter-finalist in history, surpassing Roger Federer’s previous record (38 years, two months), which the Swiss achieved in 2019 in Shanghai. Should Djokovic claim a record-extending fifth Shanghai title, he will break his tie with Federer for the most hard-court tour-level titles in the Open Era (71).
Into the Shanghai quarter-finals for the 11th time in as many appearances, Djokovic will next meet Belgian Zizou Bergs for their maiden Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting. The Belgrade native, seeded fourth, is the highest-ranked player remaining in the draw.
Djokovic is chasing his 41st ATP Masters 1000 title and first since he triumphed in Paris in 2023. Currently third in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin, Djokovic holds a 34-10 season record, according to the Infosys ATP Win/Loss Index.
Watch Highlights from Djokovic’s hard-fought Shanghai win vs. Munar
Jack Draper hires Jamie Delgado, who worked with Andy Murray when he became world number one, as his new head coach.
Valentin Vacherot was on the verge of tears on Tuesday when he advanced to his maiden ATP Masters 1000 quarter-final at the Rolex Shanghai Masters.
The first Monegasque player to reach a tour-level quarter-final in history, the qualifier Vacherot ousted Tallon Griekspoor 4-6, 7-6(1), 6-4 after a topsy-turvy, two-hour, 22-minute battle that ended 10 minutes shy of 1 a.m.
“It means everything,” said Vacherot in disbelief. “I don’t think I could really realise what I was doing this whole week and it kind of all hit me when I just won this match. I was just happy this whole week, but not through the roof and this one is unbelievable.
“So much emotion just thinking of the tough times I had last year, even this year. Just to share that with my coach, brother, my girlfriend — it’s unbelievable and I’m having one of the best times in my life right now.”
Vacherot entered the week at World No. 204, with just one career win at an ATP Tour event, having reached the second round of his home tournament, this year’s Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters. Thanks to his Shanghai run, Vacherot has skyrocketed to No. 130 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings. The 26-year-old, who hammered 40 winners against Griekspoor, is the lowest-ranked quarter-finalist in Shanghai history.
“This is 100 per cent the reward, being on the bench six months last year [due to injury],” said Vacherot, who has ousted three seeded players consecutively: 14th seed Alexander Bublik, 20th seed Tomas Machac and 27th seed Griekspoor.
“Thankfully, I was able to play free since January. That was unbelievable. I had a nasty fall at Wimbledon in the [qualifying] first round, I was a few points from victory. I’m not going to lie, I thought I was going to be out a couple of months again. It was just a few weeks. Now this is the reward for everything I went through.”
Vacherot will next meet 10th seed Holger Rune. When asked about his upcoming match, Vacherot said: “I don’t even know who I’m playing, I don’t look at the draw.”
Vacherot’s cousin, Arthur Rinderknech, is also still alive in the tournament. The Frenchman, who upset Alexander Zverev on Monday, will next face 15th seed Jiri Lehecka on Wednesday. Vacherot and Rinderknech both attended Texas A&M University, where they shared two seasons together (2016, 2017).
Since 2022, Vacherot’s half-brother, Benjamin Balleret, has been his full-time coach.
[NEWSLETTER FORM]