Daniil Medvedev survived a near-three-hour slog against Learner Tien to reach the Shanghai Masters quarter-finals, triumphing 7-6 (8-6) 6-7 (1-7) 6-4.

Medvedev retired from his China Open semi-final against Tien last week when trailing 5-7 7-5 4-0, accusing the umpire of attempting to intimidate him after he was given a warning for a "lack of effort".

Tien went on to suffer a 6-2 6-2 defeat to Jannik Sinner in the final of the Beijing event, and the American was also beaten in his rematch with Medvedev on Wednesday.

The first set went on serve for eight games until Medvedev converted his third break point, though Tien hit back immediately to force a tie-break.

Medvedev won a topsy-turvy tie-break that featured nine mini-breaks, and he soon found himself 3-0 up in the second set, as the players battled through intense heat.

However, Tien then reeled off five games in a row before wasting a chance to serve out the second set, though the American did level proceedings by dominating a second tie-break.

It looked as though the momentum was with Tien at that point, with Medvedev also ranting at the umpire after being called for a time violation, saying: "I spent all my life waiting 55 seconds for Nadal and now you call me on 25 seconds?"

But the former US Open champion channelled his frustrations into an excellent third set, winning 90% (18/20) of his first-serve points and getting the all-important break in the penultimate game.

Medvedev will face Alex de Minaur in the last eight after the Australian beat Nuno Borges 7-5 6-2, though there is no place in the quarter-finals for Lorenzo Musetti, who lost 6-4 6-2 to Felix Auger Aliassime.

Meddy’s Moment! @DaniilMedwed outlasts Tien (7-6 6-7 6-4) in an EPIC encounter to advance into the Shanghai quarter-finals@SH_RolexMasters | #RolexShanghaiMasterspic.twitter.com/Ah3jbLrNUs

— ATP Tour (@atptour) October 8, 2025

Data Debrief: Medvedev breaks Tien hoodoo, maintains hard-court consistency 

Tien had held a 2-0 head-to-head record against Medvedev ahead of Wednesday's match, but the Russian earned a measure of revenge for last week's defeat in Beijing. 

Medvedev will now participate in a third Shanghai Masters quarter-final, with Novak Djokovic (10) the only active player to reach more.

It is also the seventh consecutive season in which Medvedev has made multiple ATP 1000 Masters quarter-finals on hard courts.