Tsitsipas sets up Medvedev clash in Shanghai Masters

SHANGHAI (AP) — Stefanos Tsitsipas' rivalry with Daniil Medvedev will add another chapter after the Greek player beat Alexandre Muller 6-3, 7-5 at the Shanghai Masters on Tuesday.

The 12th-ranked Tsitsipas and the Russian former U.S. Open champion will meet for a 14th time, and first in nearly a year. The fifth-ranked Medvedev has a commanding 9-4 lead in the head-to-head series, which has spilled over into a war of words off the court in the past.

“I consider him someone that I respect on the tour, much more than I did before," Tsitsipas said. "We’ve had some heated things on the court in the past, but I think those things have resolved themselves over time, and we also had the time to speak about those things and have a common understanding of why these things happen.

“What is missing is trying to get a good win under my belt, and that will redeem my efforts for so far of trying to get better. My whole goal is to get out there, play the best tennis that I can.”

Tsitsipas had to wait out a two-day rain delay to play his third-round match against Muller, but looked in complete control until losing his serve at 5-3 in the second set. Unperturbed, the Greek broke back to love to clinch the match and renew his six-year rivalry with Medvedev.

No. 16-ranked Ben Shelton put away Roberto Carballes Baena 6-3, 6-4, firing eight aces and 24 winners to line up top seed Jannik Sinner in the fourth round.

Seventh-ranked Taylor Fritz also advanced with ease, beating Japan's Yosuke Watanuki 6-3, 6-4, while Grigor Dimitrov, playing in his 100th Masters event, beat Alexei Popyrin 7-6 (5), 6-3.

Gael Monfils upset 15th-ranked Ugo Humbert 7-6 (7), 2-6, 6-1 in an all-French matchup. The 38-year-old Monfils, ranked 46th, is the second oldest player to reach the Shanghai fourth round in Shanghai, behind only Roger Federer (also 38) in 2019.

“It’s never easy to play Ugo, he’s really aggressive, playing fast off both wings and takes a lot of time from you,” said Monfils, who plays second-ranked Carlos Alcaraz next.

“Carlos is in a confident mood (having) just won a tournament ( China Open ), so that’s going to be a tough one for sure.”

Also, Tomas Machac, who made the semifinals in Tokyo, eased past Australian Alexander Vukic 6-4, 6-2 and next faces No. 13-ranked Tommy Paul in the third round.

Later Tuesday, four-time champion Novak Djokovic plays his third-round match against Flavio Cobolli, bidding to capture his 100th tour-level title. Third-ranked Alexander Zverev faces Tallon Griekspoor of the Netherlands in a night match.

Katerina Siniakova had a comfortable 6-3, 6-1 victory over Alexandra Eala of the Philippines to set up a second-round match against defending champion Aryna Sabalenka.

Second-ranked Sabalenka, who won the title the last time it was played in 2019, needs only to make the quarterfinals at Wuhan to regain top spot in the rankings from Iga Swiatek, who withdrew from the women’s Asian swing citing fatigue and personal reasons. Swiatek recently split with coach Tomasz Wiktorowski.

Magda Linette of Poland routed No. 23-ranked Liudmila Samsonova 6-2, 6-2, and Ekaterina Alexandrova beat former Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin of the U.S. 6-1, 4-6, 6-4.

Other winners included Britain’s Katie Boulter, American Amanda Anisimova, Bulgaria's Viktoriya Tomova and Romania's Jaqueline Cristian, who has Paris Olympics gold medalist Zheng Qinwen next,

After snapping a 24-match losing streak at the China Open last week, Zhang Shuai’s change of fortune turned in Wuhan as she lost to Yulia Putintseva of Kazakhstan 6-4, 6-4 in the first round.

The top eight seeds, including Sabalenka and China Open champion Coco Gauff, received a first-round bye.

AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis

Ugo Humbert of France plays a backhand return against his compatriot Gael Monfils during the men's singles third round match in the Shanghai Masters tennis tournament at Qizhong Forest Sports City Tennis Center in Shanghai, China (AP Photo/Andy Wong)

Gael Monfils of France plays a forehand return against his compatriot Ugo Humbert during the men's singles third round match in the Shanghai Masters tennis tournament at Qizhong Forest Sports City Tennis Center in Shanghai, China (AP Photo/Andy Wong)

Gael Monfils of France serves against his compatriot Ugo Humbert during the men's singles third round match in the Shanghai Masters tennis tournament at Qizhong Forest Sports City Tennis Center in Shanghai, China (AP Photo/Andy Wong)

Taylor Fritz of the United States plays a backhand return against Yosuke Watanuki of Japan during the men's singles third round match in the Shanghai Masters tennis tournament at Qizhong Forest Sports City Tennis Center in Shanghai, China, Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)

Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece plays a backhand return against Alexandre Muller of France during the men's singles third round match in the Shanghai Masters tennis tournament at Qizhong Forest Sports City Tennis Center in Shanghai, China (AP Photo/Andy Wong)

Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece plays a backhand return against Alexandre Muller of France during the men's singles third round match in the Shanghai Masters tennis tournament at Qizhong Forest Sports City Tennis Center in Shanghai, China (AP Photo/Andy Wong)

Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece reacts during the men's singles third round match against Alexandre Muller of France, in the Shanghai Masters tennis tournament at Qizhong Forest Sports City Tennis Center in Shanghai, China (AP Photo/Andy Wong)

BEIRUT (AP) — Hezbollah’s acting leader said Tuesday that even more Israelis will be displaced as the militant group extends its rocket fire deeper into Israel, in a defiant televised statement marking the anniversary of fighting that escalated into war last month.

In a defiant televised statement, acting leader Sheikh Naim Kassem said Hezbollah's capabilities are still intact despite weeks of heavy Israeli airstrikes and that it has replaced senior commanders killed in Israeli airstrikes.

“We are firing hundreds of rockets and dozens of drones. A large number of settlements and cities are under the fire of the resistance,” Kassem said. “Our capabilities are fine and our fighters are deployed along the frontlines."

He said Hezbollah's top leadership was directing the war and that the commanders slain by Israel have been replaced, saying “we have no vacant posts.”

He said that Hezbollah will name a new leader to succeed Hassan Nasrallah, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike in an underground base in Beirut last month, “but the circumstances are difficult because of the war.”

A man shows a burnt car to a girl, after a rocket launched from Lebanon, hit an area in Kfar Vradim, northern Israel, Monday, Oct. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

A man walks as smoke rises from destroyed buildings at the site of an Israeli airstrike in Choueifat, southeast of Beirut, Lebanon, Monday, Oct. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)