British No.1 Jack Draper was controversially adjudged to have obstructed opponent Daniil Medvedev as his Indian Wells title defense ended in the quarter-finals.
The 24-year-old Briton, understandably looking tired from his exploits in beating Novak Djokovic less than 24 hours earlier, went down 6-1 7-5 to the former world No.1.
The decisive moment came at 5-5 and 0-15 in the second set when referee Aurelie Torte decided to award Medvedev a point following a video review after Draper had raised his arms on a disputed line call and was deemed to have distracted his opponent, with Medvedev going on to seal a crucial break.
The California crowd made their feelings clear as Medvedev was booed at the changing ends and again after claiming victory shortly after, although Draper shook hands with both Medvedev and Torte before leaving the field.
In a one-sided first set, Draper was broken in his opening service game after a net fell in Medvedev’s favor on break point.
After rattling through his own service game, Medvedev produced winners down the line and crossed the court to move into a 4-0 lead after just 15 minutes.
Draper finally got on the board with a hold of serve for 5-1, but it was only a temporary reprieve as Medvedev wrapped up the set in 25 minutes.
The second set was a closer contest, although it was the Draper serve that consistently came under the greater pressure, with Medvedev telling his opponent he “didn’t feel good” about the incident, which ultimately helped earn him a semi-final berth at the end of the match.
Medvedev is on an eight-match winning streak after arriving in California following a title run in Dubai.
The 30-year-old has won 16 straight sets since falling to Stefanos Tsitsipas in Rotterdam.
“If you look at the first forehand I made after it happened, I think I could have made a better shot if there was no gesture from Jack,” Medvedev told reporters.
“Was I distracted?
Norrie outclassed by Alcaraz
Carlos Alcaraz celebrates after defeating Cameron Norrie
Britain’s interest in the singles ended when Cameron Norrie fell 6-3 6-4 Carlos Alcaraz.
The British No. 2 fought fiercely against the World No. 1, but was eventually outclassed.
Norrie struggled to get a hold on the Alcaraz serve in the early stages as he struggled to hold and the 30-year-old was eventually broken in the sixth game of the competition.
Surprisingly, it led to a temporary lapse in concentration from the Spaniard, who was broken back to love only to then force a third straight draw before closing out the opening set.
Norrie got an early break in the second set, but his own service problems saw Alcaraz pull back in front.
Norrie saved the first three match points he faced, but Alcaraz duly converted the fourth to set up a semi-final showdown with Medvedev.
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