Daniil Medvedev sails past injured Jiri Lehecka into Wimbledon quarter-finals
By Ed Elliot, PA
World number three Daniil Medvedev eased into his maiden Wimbledon quarter-final after Jiri Lehecka was forced to retire injured.
The 27-year-old Russian was in control on Court One and had just gone two sets ahead at 6-4 6-2 when his Czech opponent pulled out.
Lehecka received treatment during a medical timeout at the end of the opening set but initially battled on in some discomfort before opting for a premature departure.
A maiden #Wimbledon quarter-final awaits, @DaniilMedwed 🙌 pic.twitter.com/p3eIgD8qdJ
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 10, 2023
Medvedev awaits either world number five Stefanos Tsitsipas or American Christopher Eubanks in the last eight.
“I honestly did not (realise) until he retired,” he said of Lehecka’s injury.
“I saw that maybe his movement is a little bit restricted but the way he was throwing the ball I thought that it was not causing him enough trouble but then when he retired, I was like, ‘OK, I see it different’.
“I feel sorry for Jiri. Hopefully he can recover fast and he has a lot more grand slams to come ahead of him.”
Only at #Wimbledon 😅 pic.twitter.com/omls2pmWdo
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 10, 2023
Lehecka showed some touches of class but his performance was undermined by a series of errors and, ultimately, his fitness issue.
The 21-year-old struggled to deal with the power of Medvedev, with one of his returns of serve flying off court and landing in a spectator’s drink.
Both players were then forced to sit down during the sixth game of the second set due to a medical emergency in the crowd.
The affected spectator eventually walked out of the arena with the aid of medics following a delay of around 10 minutes.
Speaking about reaching the last eight at SW19 for the first time, Medvedev added: “It’s probably my fifth or sixth Wimbledon and I was not very successful but I never lost on this court.
“I feel sorry that all the quarters are going to be played on Centre (Court). I’m like, ‘can I just continue here?’.
“I’m really happy and looking forward to the next match.”
