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Daniil Medvedev lost to 19-year-old qualifier Learner Tien 6-3, 7-6 (7/4), 6-7 (8/10), 1-6, 7-6 (10/7) in the second round of the Australian Open.
Australian Open 2025: Daniil Medvedev loses his cool and the match (AP)
Last year’s runner-up Daniil Medvedev was dumped out in the Australian Open second round early Friday morning by 19-year-old qualifier Learner Tien in a massive Melbourne shock.
The American ranked 121 stunned the world number five 6-3, 7-6 (7/4), 6-7 (8/10), 1-6, 7-6 (10/7) in a nail-biter and faces France’s Corentin Moutet in the next round in his debut Australian Open.
The 4-hour, 49-minute contest had a bit of everything, including — hard to believe — a six-minute rain delay that interrupted play shortly before 2:30 a.m. with Tien serving at 5-all, 15-all in the fifth set. When they resumed, Medvedev broke and served for the victory at 6-5, but Tien wouldn’t cede a thing, broke back, and forced the concluding first-to-10 tiebreaker that he emerged to win shortly before 3 a.m., about two hours after he failed to convert his initial match point.
The outcome was eyebrow-raising because of the wide gulf in experience and accomplishments between the two players at Margaret Court Arena. Tien is ranked 121st and owned a career Grand Slam record of 0-3 before this week; Medvedev was seeded No. 5, won the 2021 U.S. Open and was the runner-up at Melbourne Park in three of the past four years, including 12 months ago.
But the left-handed Tien played fearlessly and almost flawlessly for stretches, surprisingly getting the better of lengthy exchanges at the baseline: Across the first two sets, he won 32 of the 51 points that lasted nine or more strokes, even coming out on top on one that went 45 shots and another that lasted 32.
With the time ticking towards 3:00 am, the left-handed Californian Tien soaked up the applause at Margaret Court Arena after the biggest win of his young career.
Tien had defeated Argentina’s Camilo Ugo Carabelli in five sets in the first round for his maiden victory at a Grand Slam at the fourth attempt.
It was a meek exit for Russia’s former world number one Medvedev, who has lost three of the last four finals at Melbourne Park including to Jannik Sinner in 2024.
The 28-year-old Medvedev needed five sets to beat the 418th-ranked Kasidit Samrej on Tuesday in his first match of the season, smashing his racquet and a net camera in a rage at one point.
(With inputs from Agencies)
