Wu Yibing ignites Hangzhou with Medvedev upset

The Lynk & Co Hangzhou Open courts thrummed under floodlights as Wu Yibing faced the familiar menace of Daniil Medvedev's returns. The local favorite absorbed an early set loss, his strokes initially buckling under the Russian's deep crosscourt lasers that pinned him deep. But as humidity thickened the air, Wu's flat groundstrokes found their edge, redirecting pace with inside-out forehands that skimmed the lines and forced hurried replies. Medvedev, the former Nitto ATP Finals champion, hammered 17 aces across the three-hour, 11-minute duel, his serve a bulwark against the mounting crowd roar. Yet at 5-4 in the second set, two double faults while serving for the match cracked his armor, handing Wu the tiebreak lifeline at 7-6(5). The shift ignited the decider, where the 25-year-old unleashed effortless ball striking, breaking back from a set-and-break deficit to seal 6-4 and his first Lexus ATP Head2Head win over the ninth seed, now 1-2.

Resilience rises from injury's shadow

Wu's surge carried the scars of a grueling hiatus, absent from March 2019 until January 2022 due to elbow surgery, lower back pain, shoulder strains, and wrist issues. Returning in just his fourth tour-level event this season—after a Challenger triumph in Tyler this June—he clawed into his first semifinal since the 2023 Dallas run, where he became the first Chinese man to claim an ATP Tour title. The Hangzhou faithful amplified his one–two patterns, crosscourt backhands pulling Medvedev wide before down-the-line slices disrupted his footing on the medium-paced hard courts. Medvedev, competing without coach of eight years Gilles Cervara for the first time, sat 22nd in the PIF ATP Live Race to Turin, his counterpunching tested by Wu's aggressive redirects. The Russian's double faults echoed the pressure of reclaiming rhythm post-split, while the local's varied attack—mixing topspin lobs with flat passing shots—turned the arena into a symphony of defiance. This victory, born of rebuilt fortitude, positioned Wu against third seed Alexander Bublik, who dismantled lucky loser Dalibor Svrcina 6-1, 6-1 in 53 minutes, claiming all 22 first-serve points and saving his sole break chance. Bublik's flair, fueled by three ATP titles this season, promises a stylistic clash: the Kazakhstani's serve-volley unpredictability versus Wu's baseline precision, with the surface's moderate grip favoring quick adjustments under the lights. Infosys ATP Stats captured the third seed's efficiency, a counterpoint to the main match's grind, as both advance amid a tour demanding mental steel amid injury echoes and ranking pursuits.

French fire fuels semifinal intrigue

Across the draw, Valentin Royer channeled breakthrough energy, backing his upset over top seed Andrey Rublev with a 7-6(0), 4-6, 6-2 triumph over Learner Tien in two hours and 38 minutes. Trailing a break in the third, the 24-year-old Frenchman sparked late, converting all three break points with inside-in forehands that exploited second-serve dips on the grippy hard courts. His maiden ATP Tour semifinal lifted him five spots to a career-high No. 83 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings, transforming a debut week into consecutive victories for the first time. Royer now meets fourth seed Corentin Moutet in an all-French semifinal, the latter progressing when Tomas Martin Etcheverry retired at 3-6, 3-0, visibly hampered after the opener. Moutet, who erased two match points in his second-round escape against Arthur Cazaux, reached his third semifinal of the season, rising two places to No. 37 in the live rankings. The 26-year-old's lefty slices and drop shots thrived on Hangzhou's bounce, weaving tactical webs that mirror the draw's depth. As October 1, 2025, dawns on the semifinals, Hangzhou pulses with tales of comebacks and cunning, where home soil and hard-court tempo forge paths to glory, testing if Wu's fire and the French duo's spark can illuminate the weekend's next chapter.