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Two streaks ended for Daniil Medvedev on Sunday night at the BNP Paribas Open, but not the one that really mattered. When Ilya Ivashka won the second set against the fifth seed, it ended Medvedev's 18-set winning run and his seven-set streak against the World No. 85.

But the four-time ATP Masters 1000 champion regrouped to secure a 6-2, 3-6, 6-1 result, scoring his 16th straight victory to advance to the fourth round, where he will meet Alexander Zverev. His progress to the last 16 matches his best Indian Wells result from 2021.

The matchup against Zverev, the pair's first ATP Head2Head meeting since Zverev's victory in the 2021 Nitto ATP Finals, will break a 6-6 tie in the series.

"I think our match could be a lot of rallies. Let's see. It's going to be interesting," Medvedev previewed. "I feel like he's playing better and better, which is normal after a tough injury. He's someone who was one of the best players on Tour, going kind of close to World No. 1, started playing better and better in Grand Slams.

"His injury was unfortunate but I'm sure he's going to come back. Hopefully next match I can be the winner and I can play some good tennis."

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It was business as usual at the start, with Medvedev breaking in the opening game of a straightforward first set. He broke again to open the second set, only for Ivashka to break back from 40/15 to spark a run of eight straight points and flip the feeling on the stadium court.

Strong serving kept Medvedev in the set, but Ivashka was on top in the many long rallies as his opponent grew frustrated with what he felt were slow conditions in the desert night. A loose service game handed a break to Ivashka, who served out the set to love to force a decider.

"[In the] second set I don't feel like I was playing bad," Medvedev said post-match. "It's just that you hit 10 good shots in the rally and it could be not enough. That's tough."


Just when it appeared Medvedev had a battle on his hands, he rediscovered the form that propelled him to titles in each of his past three ATP Tour events (Rotterdam, Doha, Dubai). He raced to a 5-0 lead in the final set, locking in from the baseline to blunt Ivashka's power game, and served out the win after Ivashka avoided a bagel with a 0/40 escape, completing the job on his fifth match point.

Medvedev finished with eight aces and six double faults, those statistics underlining an up-and-down performance at the year's first ATP Masters 1000. But as champions do, he played his best when it mattered most.

Fifth seed next plays Davidovich Fokina
Down but not out, Daniil Medvedev extended his red-hot winning streak to 17 matches Tuesday when he recovered from a heavy fall to defeat Alexander Zverev at the BNP Paribas Open.

The fifth seed took a tumble when moving out wide at 2-3 in the second set, yelping in pain as he rolled his right ankle. However, after having his ankle taped, he continued and turned the match around, capturing victory on his second match point to earn a statement 6-7(5), 7-6(5), 7-5 victory against the 12th-seeded German.

"When I twisted [my ankle], I thought I was going to stand up just fine," Medvedev said. "But then the pain started growing very fast, so I was like 'That is not a good sign.' I felt like I didn't break it but I felt that one of the ligaments was a little injured, so I thought I wasn't going to be able to play. It was one of the first times in my life that the physio had taped my ankle, so I decided to give it a try. What was surprising was it was much easier to run than walk. So when I was walking I was limping and then I was running fine.

"When the adrenaline goes down, it will be pretty painful, so I am going to probably do a scan to see what it is and if I can continue to play."

<a href='https://www.atptour.com/en/players/dani ... ew'>Daniil Medvedev</a> takes a tumble during his three-set win over <a href='https://www.atptour.com/en/players/alex ... >Alexander Zverev</a>.
Photo Credit: Peter Staples/ATP Tour

<a href='https://www.atptour.com/en/players/dani ... ew'>Daniil Medvedev</a> takes time out after an ankle injury as <a href='https://www.atptour.com/en/players/alex ... >Alexander Zverev</a> looks on.
Photo Credit: Peter Staples/ATP Tour

In the 13th chapter of their rivalry, the fifth seed struck 40 winners and demonstrated his trademark defensive skills. He stood deep behind the baseline to soak up Zverev’s hitting, cutting down on errors as the match went on to wear down the German and reach the quarter-finals in Indian Wells for the first time.

After losing the opening set, Medvedev saved all 10 break points he faced in the second set, twice rallying from 0/40. He then levelled the match in the tie-break, producing a stunning defensive smash at 1/1. In the third set, Medvedev recovered from squandering a match point on serve at 5-4, with Zverev breaking back. Medvedev would not be denied, though, breaking again when Zverev hit a double fault, before he held serve to advance after three hours and 16 minutes.

The 27-year-old now leads Zverev 7-6 in their ATP Head2Head series, avenging his loss against the German in the title match at the 2021 Nitto ATP Finals.


Medvedev, currently No. 5 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings, is chasing his fourth consecutive title, having triumphed in Rotterdam, Doha and Dubai in the past month. He will continue his quest in California against Alejandro Davidovich Fokina.

Zverev missed the second half of last season after suffering a right ankle injury during his Roland Garros semi-final against Rafael Nadal. The 25-year-old struggled to find his best level when returning to Tour in January, but has produced more consistent performances in recent weeks, advancing to the semi-finals in Dubai before his run to the fourth round in Indian Wells.