Daniil Medvedev DQ'd After Accidentally Hitting Fan with Ball on Video in Match vs. Novak Djokovic

Daniil Medvedev was defaulted in his semifinal match against Novak Djokovic at the China Open.

Medvedev lost the first set 5-7 and trailed 3-5 in the second when he hit the ball into the crowd after a point and inadvertently struck a fan. That led tournament officials to award Djokovic the victory.

"The spectator was helped out of the arena holding a hand over his left eye," according to the Associated Press.

"The chair umpire and tournament supervisor came down onto the court to talk with Medvedev, who didn't appear to put up much of an argument with the disqualification. Medvedev then walked to the net and shook hands with Djokovic," per the Associated Press.

The 24-time Grand Slam champion was particularly empathetic toward his opponent because his 2020 U.S. Open run ended in a similar situation.

"A bit of a shock, to be honest," he said, per Andy West of the ATP Tour's official site. "Sorry for the person [who got hit]. I honestly didn't see what happened. I hope that person is not badly injured. On the other hand, I also feel sorry for Daniil, because I know exactly how he feels to be disqualified in a big match. I was disqualified at the 2020 US Open in similar circumstances. I am sure that Daniil didn't want to do this intentionally. It just happens."

Djokovic will play Alex de Minaur in the final. De Minaur didn't have to go the distance in the semis, either, as Hubert Hurkacz retired in the second set of their encounter.