Daniil Medvedev has been accused of “viciously” mocking Novak Djokovic during their eventful China Open clash.

Trailing 7-5, 5-3 to Djokovic, Medvedev reacted angrily when the Serbian hit a winner past him to make it 15-15.

After the ball ricocheted off the back of the court, Medvedev took a backhand swipe at it in frustration, sending the fuzzy yellow object smack bang into an unsuspecting spectator in the front row.

As the fan clutched his face, chair umpire Mohamed Lahyani and an ATP official ruled that Medvedev should be defaulted, leading to a sorry end to an exciting semi-final.

Djokovic and Medvedev shook hands at the net, with the former going on to express his sympathy for the 30-year-old, particularly as he was defaulted from the 2020 US Open for accidentally hitting a ball at a line judge.

More China Open News

Want more from Tennis365? Add us as a preferred source on Google to your favourites list for tennis coverage you can trust.

While things between the pair were cordial before and after the match, during it, Medvedev was not best pleased with some of Djokovic’s apparent antics.

The 39-year-old has been struggling physically this tournament but managed to push through in his earlier wins over Nuno Borges, Bu Yunchaokete, and Alexander Zverev.

At 1-1 in the second set, Medvedev appeared to mock Djokovic, who repeatedly bent over in apparent pain after long, gruelling rallies – for which there were many in this near two hour thirty minute match.

One X user described this as “vile” and accused Medvedev of “viciously” mocking Djokovic. Others described the Russian as a “clown” who was acting “awfully”.

Medvedev actually mocked Djokovic quite viciously

Disgraceful

https://t.co/M0v7PFAqFb

https://t.co/Db2FrYKg9q

— Corvath Draemir (@Archaicmind3000) October 5, 2026

On the flip side, some said Djokovic has done this ‘playing dead’ act for more than a decade now, with some praising Medvedev for “finally calling it out”.

Medvedev did this a couple more times in the third game of the second set, which Djokovic eventually going on to hold after staving off multiple break points.

While Medvedev – who took a medical timeout himself at 4-2 down before breaking back the next game – faces losing all the prize money and ranking points he netted at the China Open due to this default, Djokovic extended his perfect record at the tournament to 33-0.

He will now face a rejuvenated Alex De Minaur in Tuesday’s final. Whether the 24-time major winner can recover in time for that match remains to be seen but few would be surprised to see him lift his first title of the season with the way he is playing.

WHAT NEXT? Annabel Croft calls for rule change after Daniil Medvedev’s actions against Novak Djokovic