Anastasia Potapova reflects on boyfriend Alexander Shevchenko's Madrid Open loss to Daniil Medvedev

Anastasia Potapova was in attendance at the 2023 Madrid Open clash between her boyfriend Alexander Shevchenko and World No. 3 Daniil Medvedev on Monday.

Medvedev was given a scare by his younger compatriot in the Round-of -32 match at the Masters 1000 event. Shevchenko made a commanding start, earning a 5-1 lead in the opening set. The 2021 US Open champion fought back to reduce the deficit to just one break at 5-4, but his 22-year-old opponent managed to close out the set on serve, 6-4.

Daniil Medvedev then dominated the second set, allowing Alexander Shevchenko just one service game to force a decider. The third set was a neck-and-neck battle between the two Russians. While the qualifier broke twice, Medvedev managed to break back on both occasions.

The World No. 3 then scored a crucial break at 6-5 in the third, which he followed by holding serve to win the match 4-6, 6-1, 7-5.

Watching it all unfold was Alexander Shevchenko’s girlfriend - Anastasia Potapova. The World No. 25 herself ended up on the losing side against compatriot Veronika Kudermetova in the Round of 32 on Sunday.

Reflecting on her boyfriend’s loss, Potapova conveyed that she whole-heartedly cheered for him during his Masters 1000 debut. She also stated that she was proud of him despite the loss.

“Left all my heart, voice and soul today. So proud, keep doing your thing @shevchenkoo_17,” Anastasia Potapova wrote on Instagram.

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"I'm sure he's going to up the rankings" – Daniil Medvedev on Alexander Shevchenko after Madrid Open win

Daniil Medvedev reacts to losing opening set to Alexander Shevchanko at the 2023 Madrid Open

Daniil Medvedev and Alexander Shevchenko first bonded through PlayStation. They have been friends ever since the World No. 96 received a last-minute invitation from Medvedev to represent Russia at the 2022 ATP Cup.

The 2023 Madrid Open clash was the duo’s first encounter, and Medvedev reflected after the match on his compatriot's exceptional display of tennis.

“He played well. He’s young, so I’m sure he’s going to up the rankings, especially if he plays like in this tournament. It’s always like this. He’s still young so he has a lot of time to go up,” Daniil Medvedev said in the post-match presser.

“I practiced with him before. I know that he can play very good, so the more consistent he is [and] the more matches he plays like this, maybe next time he’s going to win and the higher he is going to go. I’m very happy that today I managed to beat him,” he added.

Shevchenko has made great strides this season. He he has featured in three Challenger finals so far in 2023, winning two of them. He also broke into the top 100 after winning his latest trophy at the Madrid Challenger.

After his impressive run at the Madrid Open, the 22-year-old is expected to reach a career-high ranking of World No. 91 next Monday.

Meanwhile, Daniil Medvedev is set for a face-off against yet another Russian, Aslan Karatsev, for a spot in the quarterfinals.