Federer and Medvedev through to the semis in Basel

Roger Federer and Daniil Medvedev set up a semifinal showdown in Basel with quarterfinal victories on Friday evening.

(1) Roger Federer def. Gilles Simon 7-6(1), 4-6, 6-4

Roger Federer was forced to work for his quarterfinal victory over Gilles Simon in Basel on Friday. The Frenchman served for the opening set but got broken. Then, with Federer serving at 5-6 to stay in the set, Simon had another chance to break. Federer staved him off and played better in the tiebreak, allowing Simon just one point.

It’s was a good thing for Federer that he squeaked by in the first, because Simon rallied in the second to tie the match up at a set a piece. The eight-time Basel champion went down an early break in the third, but steady nerves and some pressure on Simon saw Federer pull out the victory in the end.

(7) Daniil Medvedev def. Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-4, 3-6, 6-3

This match marked Daniil Medvedev’s third victory over Stefanos Tsitsipas in 2018. The first came at a highly charged match in Miami in which a frustrated Tsitsipas insulted Medvedev and in turn, the Russian threatened to fight him. Things were more civil this time around, though they stopped short of cordiality on the court with a cool handshake at the net.

After Medvedev tucked away the first set, Tsitsipas came roaring back in the second to level the match at a set apiece. But as the deciding set wore on, Tsitsipas was the more tired of the two players. Medvedev broke for 5-3 and then served out the match to set up Saturday’s semifinal against Federer.