The Full Story

A plain summary built from the channels that reported this story.

Daniil Medvedev has been disqualified from the China Open in Beijing after hitting a spectator in the face with a ball during his semi-final against Novak Djokovic.

The incident happened while Djokovic was leading by one set. Medvedev lost a point and then swiped the ball backwards in anger into the stands behind him. The ball struck a spectator in the face.

The man was seen clutching his face, with his hand held over his eye, as he was helped out of the arena. The match was halted after the incident, and Medvedev was disqualified from the tournament.

The Russian player, who has become known for his on-court behaviour, will lose the points and prize money he had earned so far in Beijing.

On screen

Stills are sampled automatically at 60-second intervals. Where shown, the still is the nearest available frame from the relevant broadcast segment and is included to show what was on screen during that part of the broadcast. A still may not correspond to the exact second of a quoted phrase.

BBC One, BBC News, 5 October 2026

Key Claims

Claims reported during this story's coverage, grouped by how many channels reported each one. Select a dot to see the source excerpt.

Claim
Only on one channel
Medvedev was disqualified from the Beijing tournament after angrily swiping a ball into the stands while trailing Djokovic by one set, forfeiting his points and prize money there.

Channel Perspectives

What each channel focused on, with key quotes.

BBC ONE West treated the incident as a drama at the China Open and led with the sequence of events: Djokovic was a set up, Medvedev lost a point, then swiped the ball backwards into the stands. Its tone was factual and measured, with emphasis on the spectator being hit in the face and helped from the arena. It also noted Medvedev's reputation for on-court behaviour and the loss of ranking points and prize money, but gave no reaction from the player, opponent or tournament officials.

Key Quotes:
  • “Now there's been drama at the China Open in Beijing during the semi-final between Novak Djokovic and Russia's Daniil Medvedev and Medvedev was disqualified after this happened.”
  • “The ball hit a spectator in the face and the man was seen with his hand still clutching his face, holding it over his eye as he was helped out of the arena.”
  • “The Russian player who has become rather well known for his on-court behaviour will now lose the points and prize money that he had earned so far in Beijing.”

Broadcast Timeline

News broadcasts tracked for this story, in time order.

BBC News