Russia’s Daniil Medvedev missed out on a chance to return to the top of the world rankings as he lost to Poland’s Hubert Hurkacz at the Miami Open.
Medvedev, 26, needed to reach the semi-finals to overtake Novak Djokovic, but lost 7-6 (9-7) 6-3 to eighth seed Hurkacz in Thursday’s quarter-final.
Medvedev trailed 5-2 in the first set, fought back to 5-5 but then lost the tie-break.
Hurkacz sealed success with breaks in the fifth and ninth games of set two.
The 25-year-old Hurkacz, who beat Roger Federer in the quarter-finals at Wimbledon last summer, will play Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz next.
Alcaraz, seeded 14th in Miami, overcame Serbia’s Miomir Kecmanovic 6-7 (5-7) 6-3 7-6 (7-5).
Alcaraz, tipped as one of the rising stars of the sport, fell to his knees and cradled his head in his hands after sealing victory.
“I think that I’m playing in Spain,” Alcaraz said of the crowd.
“It’s unbelievable. I think without them it would not be possible to get into the semi-finals today.”
In February, Medvedev became only the 27th player to top the ATP Tour world rankings, although he only stayed there for three weeks before Djokovic regained the position.
Serb Djokovic has only played in one ATP Tour event in 2022 – the Dubai Tennis Championships when he lost in the quarter-finals – as a result of his refusal to be vaccinated against Covid-19.
That saw him unable to compete in the Australian Open, as well as the Indian Wells and Miami Open tournaments in the United States.
