Will Daniil Medvedev be stripped of ranking points and prize money after China Open default vs Novak Djokovic?
Novak Djokovic’s perfect streak at the Beijing Open continued after Daniil Medvedev was shockingly defaulted during their semi-final clash on Monday.
The 39-year-old has struggled physically in the majority of his matches at the ATP 500 event but has somehow battled through all the same.
In the quarter-finals, Djokovic came from a set down to beat top seed and US Open champion Alexander Zverev 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 to set up a semi-final with in-form Medvedev.
The Russian was on a seven-match winning streak after lifting the title in Hangzhou last week and went toe to toe with the 24-time major winner.
In an opening set that took 79 minutes, the Serbian came out on top 7-5, as Medvedev took just one of his eight break point opportunities.
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After a bathroom break from Djokovic, the former world No 1 continued to stave off a slew of break point opportunities, before grabbing his chance to make it 4-2.
The 30-year-old called for a medical timeout when Djokovic – who had saved 15 of the 16 break points he had faced until that point – was just two games from victory.
That pause appeared to do Medvedev a lot of good as he broke back to make it 4-3 in the second set. However, he was then swiftly broken and when Djokovic was serving for the match, the Russian smacked a ball into the crowd and it hit an unsuspecting spectator.
After a review, Medvedev was defaulted from the match, meaning Djokovic will now face a rejuvenated Alex De Minaur in the final on Tuesday.
Normally, Medvedev would pocket 200 ranking points and nearly £166,065 in prize money for reaching the semi-finals. As a result, he will lose all of his prize money and ranking points from his efforts in Beijing this week. He can appeal, though.
If that punishment stands, Medvedev will not overtake fifth-placed Felix Auger-Aliassime in the rankings. Perhaps more importantly in the race to the ATP Tour Finals, he will remain eighth but his cushion to De Minaur and Djokovic will shrink.
With the 200 points coming off, Medvedev willl be on 3,020 and Beijing finalists De Minaur and Djokovic are on 2,690 and 2,670, respectively.
In Dubai in 2024, Andrey Rublev was disqualified for unsportsmanlike conduct and initially lost all of his prize money and ranking points for the week. The Russian, who swore at a line judge in his native tongue, won his appeal, but he still paid a fine of £28,700.
Djokovic is now 33-0 in Beijing and is up to 10th in the ATP Tour rankings.
Full 2026 China Open ranking points and prize money breakdown:
First round: 0 | $31,895 (24,083)
Second round: 50 | $59,805 (£45,158)
Quarter-finalists: 100 | $112,035 (£84,597)
Semi-finalists: 200 | $219,925 (£166,065)
Finalist: 330 | $411,480 (£310,708)
Champion: 500 | $764,750 (£577,462)
WHAT NEXT? Alexander Zverev’s ranking points and prize money after Novak Djokovic loss at China Open
