Medvedev joins Zverev and Djokovic in Paris Masters quarters

Paris: Defending champion Daniil Medvedev rallied to beat unseeded American Sebastian Korda 4-6 6-1 6-3 and book a spot in the Paris Masters quarterfinals.

Korda broke the imposing Russian's serve in the ninth game of the first set on Thursday and then clinched it on his third set point. But the US Open champion eased through the second set, forcing Korda into 14 unforced errors.

Medvedev broke for a 3-2 lead in the decider with a whipped forehand pass down the line despite being at full stretch retrieving a shot.

Korda looked stunned as his opponent milked the applause from the crowd in Paris.

"There were times where I could feel the crowd supporting me because there were crunch moments, and I really loved it," Medvedev said.

"If you talk about the third set, same. I managed to make some amazing shots."

Medvedev, who is vying with top-ranked Novak Djokovic to finish the year as No. 1, served for the match but Korda broke him to trail 5-3.

He broke Korda straight back, sealing the victory on his first match point after Korda's 40th unforced error of the match.

Medvedev next faces French qualifier Hugo Gaston, who rallied from 5-0 down in the second set to win 6-4 7-5 against 18-year-old Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz.

As Gaston fought back, the home crowd cheered Alcaraz when he missed first serves or on double faults, and continued to do so despite the umpire repeatedly asking for calm.

A shocked-looking Alcaraz buried his head into his towel at 6-5 down while the crowd aggressively sang the French national anthem. Gaston clinched victory on his first match point.

Medvedev, however, felt that Gaston would be impacted by finishing at nearly 1 am.

"I remember when I finished after midnight, it was hard for me to recover the next day and to be back in shape," Medvedev said.

Djokovic is unlikely to feel so tired. He earlier advanced without playing a point because Gael Monfils pulled out injured.

Monfils, who is 0-17 against the top-ranked Djokovic, has an adductor injury.

Fourth-seeded Alexander Zverev advanced to the last eight after beating No. 16 Grigor Dimitrov 7-6 (4) 6-7 (3) 6-3 in an intense contest lasting 2 hours, 45 minutes and where Dimitrov saved two match points in the second set.