NEW YORK — Defending Western & Southern Open champion Daniil Medvedev failed to close it out in the second set Wednesday, and Roberto Bautista Agut rallied for a 1-6, 6-4, 6-3 victory that knocked yet another top player out of the tune-up tournament for the U.S. Open.
With the latest upset, top-ranked Novak Djokovic was the only player left with an ATP Masters 1000 title to his credit. Djokovic played later Wednesday with a chance to advance and face Bautista Agut in the semifinals.
Medvedev dominated the opening set and led 4-3 in the second before letting it slip away. He converted only five of 20 break points in the match and swatted his racket against the court in frustration at the end.
“After the first set, I was thinking a lot of things,” said Bautista Agut, who reached his third Masters semifinal and his first since 2016. “It was a very good comeback.”
He needed a set to adjust to the breezy, cooler conditions on court Wednesday and continued an encouraging run in the tournament.
“It’s never easy to come back and play good at first,” he said. “I have to be patient, to try to enjoy every single match I play here after six months without competing. Just pleased and happy to be in the semifinals.”
Medvedev hoisted the champion’s Rookwood Pottery cup last year in Mason, Ohio, where the tournament is held annually. This year’s event was moved to the U.S. Open site in Flushing Meadows because of pandemic precautions, creating a two-tournament event without spectators.
On the women’s side, fourth-seeded Naomi Osaka beat No. 12 Anett Kontaveit 4-6, 6-2, 7-5, reaching the semifinals as the only Top 10 player left in the bracket. She’ll play No. 14 Elise Mertens, who beat 83rd-ranked Jessica Pegula 6-1, 6-3.