Sometimes tennis isn’t pretty. Sometimes it’s cramping, complaining, and crawling your way to victory. That is exactly what Daniil Medvedev did Wednesday at the Rolex Shanghai Masters, gutting out a 7-6(6), 6-7(1), 6-4 win over Learner Tien in what can only be described as a beautiful disaster.

Medvedev’s Physical Battle Against His Own Body

The Russian looked like he was fighting two opponents: Tien and his own cramping muscles. After taking the first set in a tie-break that featured more plot twists than a soap opera, Medvedev’s body started betraying him in the second set. Cramps set in, and suddenly the world No. 5 was moving around the court like he was wearing concrete shoes.

“I think the toughest part was that we played two times [before], and in my opinion, he is an unbelievab

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