Daniil Medvedev advances to his first quarter-final of 2025 in Marseille

Former world number one Daniil Medvedev, aged 29, advanced to his first quarter-final of 2025 in Marseille on Thursday, following a surprising victory by China's Zhang Zhizhen, 28, over fourth seed Hubert Hurkacz, also 28.

Medvedev, currently ranked eighth, triumphed over French qualifier Pierre-Hugues Herbert with a score of 6-2, 6-4, in a rematch of the 2021 final, which Medvedev had previously won.

Competing in Marseille on a wild card after early exits in both the Australian Open and Rotterdam, Medvedev is aiming to secure his first title since winning in Rome in 2023.

His next opponent will be Germany's Jan-Lennard Struff, who overcame French player Hugo Grenier with a scoreline of 6-4, 5-7, 6-4 to secure his place in the semi-finals.

Zhang, ranked 52, delivered an impressive performance to defeat Hurkacz with a score of 6-4, 6-7(1), 6-3 in a powerful contest, hitting 37 winners compared to Hurkacz's 30 during their two-hour and eight-minute match.

"I felt great on court today, it was the same goal as the first match, I tried to put the match to the tie-break, and that's how I wanted to play," said Zhang, who reached the quarter-finals in Marseille in 2024. "I guess I like it here, two years in the quarters."

Zhang's next challenge will be against Belgium's Zizou Bergs, who defeated Portugal's Nuno Borges with a score of 6-2, 6-7(5), 6-2.

SportsLigue