MONTE CARLO (AFP) – Stefanos Tsitsipas’ bid for a third consecutive Monte Carlo Masters title was ended after a straight-sets loss to American Taylor Fritz in the quarterfinals on Friday, while Daniil Medvedev was knocked out by Holger Rune.
Second seed Tsitsipas was on a 12-match winning streak in the principality but slumped to a 6-2, 6-4 loss in only 70 minutes.
Fritz will face Russian Andrey Rublev on Saturday in the last four as he attempts to reach the final of a clay-court event for the first time.
Fritz’s win was his first against Tsitsipas after three previous defeats by the Greek, including a five-set thriller at the Australian Open last year.
The world number 10 — who reached a career-high ranking of fifth earlier this year — is into his third Masters semi-final, with the other two both coming at Indian Wells where he won the 2022 title.
Australian Open runner-up Tsitsipas had been the favorite to win the tournament after Novak Djokovic’s shock last-16 exit at the hands of Lorenzo Musetti on Thursday.
But he made a poor start against Fritz, falling 4-0 behind in the opening set and was never able to change the momentum.
Eighth seed Fritz secured the crucial break in the ninth game of the second set and served out the victory.
Medvedev’s run of five successive finals came to a halt as the former world number one slipped to a 6-3, 6-4 loss to Danish rising star Rune.
Russian Medvedev won his fourth title in five events at the Miami Masters earlier this month but has still never won an ATP clay-court tournament.
World number nine Rune controlled the first ever meeting between the two, breaking once in the first set and twice in the second.
The 19-year-old, who reached the French Open quarter-finals last year, is hunting his first title of the season and will next play Jannik Sinner.
Sinner cruised to a 6-2, 6-2 victory over fellow Italian youngster Musetti who failed to back up his brilliant performance against Djokovic.
