Time and time again, Daniil Medvedev was asked the hard questions during Thursday’s wind-addled quarterfinal with rising Frenchman Arthur Fils. Time and time again the two-time BNP Paribas Open finalist answered them.

Fifth-seeded Medvedev fought off an inspired comeback from the 20-year-old Frenchman to book his spot in the semifinals for a third time, 6-4, 2-6, 7-6(7). 

Medvedev, who has struggled to close matches thus far in 2025, was happy to keep the talented Frenchman at bay. He improves to 20-7 lifetime at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden. 

“I had three matches where I could have won and I lost this year,” Medvedev told the crowd. “The more you lose the more you lose your confidence in these tight moments. I was really happy not to lose a fourth match like this otherwise I would be crying for five minutes in the locker room.” 

Mixing spin, pace and trajectory, Fils managed to tilt the court in his favor for much of the second and third sets, but his push fell painfully short as Medvedvev converted his third match point to put the contest to bed after two hours and 25 minutes of riveting tennis that put the guile and guts of both combatants on display. 

Credit Fils, a three-time ATP title winner playing in his first career Masters 1000 quarterfinal, for making the pair’s second career meeting one of the most compelling of the Indian Wells fortnight. 

The World No. 21 committed 19 unforced errors in the first, but just seven in a masterful middle set that featured two breaks of serve and a tactical shift. Half of Fils’ backhands were sliced in the second set as he worked to throw Medvedev off his rhythm. 

The strategy paid dividends, and Fils even moved ahead by a break in the third, but a resilient Medvedev never lost faith. He broke back immediately, and then marched in lockstep with Fils to a third-set tiebreak. 

There were no lead changes from 4-4 in the final set, but plenty of drama. A wind storm swept through Stadium 1 at 4-4 deuce, and instantly everything that wasn’t bolted down started blowing everywhere. Towels, plastic bottles and even the net box with the tournament logo opposite the umpire chair started to slide across the gritty hardcourt. 

Order was quickly restored and play resumed with gusts of wind still periodically making their presence felt on a sunny 60-degree day, the crowd huddled in hoodies, their enthusiasm for this compelling encounter undiminished by the chill.

Fils had to save a match point against Italy’s Lorenzo Musetti in the third round to reach his first quarterfinal in the California desert, and he saved two more against Medvedev in the third-set tiebreak. 

A courageous forehand saved the first, Medvedev’s forehand reply sailing 10 feet long. A lucky letcord helped Fils save the second, but his luck ran out on the third. Fils attacked the net behind a second serve, knocked off a crisp volley, but couldn’t handle Medvedev’s swift reply – the Frenchman’s volley sailed long and Medvedev rushed to the net in jubilation, happy to have the monkey off his back. 

“The match was very tough because of the wind, so both of us were struggling in some moments,” said former World No. 1 Medvedev. “It was tough to play tactically, technically, and it’s a little bit of luck here and there.” 

Medvedev will face Denmark’s Holger Rune in a rematch of last year’s quarterfinal, won by Medvedev, 7-5, 6-4. 

“He beat me really easy in practice a couple of weeks ago – but practice is not a match,” said Medvedev of the Dane. “Happy to play against him, we’ve both had a great tournament so far.”