Greek tennis star Tsitsipas ousts Russia’s Khachanov in quarters of 2023 ATP Paris Masters
In a match that lasted for one hour and 20 minutes, the Greek player breezed past Khachanov with straight sets win of 6-3; 6-4
PARIS, November 3. /TASS/. Russian tennis player Karen Khachanov was stopped on his way to the semifinals of the 2023 ATP (the Association of Tennis Professionals) Paris Masters Tournament by Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece on Friday.
In a match that lasted for one hour and 20 minutes, the 7th-seeded Greek player breezed past Khachanov with a straight sets win of 6-3; 6-4. Tsitispas is now set to play against Bulgaria’s Grigor Dimitrov in the semifinal round of the tournament in Paris.
Asked after the match about the style of play employed to defeat the Russian player, Tsitsipas said: "It’s working well. I feel like I can mix up play."
"It feels good to have so much variety and so much diversity in the way you can play," the ATP website cited Tsitsipas as saying. "I take that as an opportunity to keep growing my game and keep looking forward at the many more matches to come and appreciate each moment that comes my way."
"It was a great feeling. I had great feel on the ball and went for it with no hesitation on the approach to the net," Tsitsipas said, adding that his drop shot was working for him today. "These are nice shots to feel on the strings of the racquet… I’m not used to setting up a match point this way, but it felt good."
Khachanov, 27, who is currently 15th in the ATP Rankings, is the winner of five ATP titles. His best performance in the Grand Slam series was when he reached the semifinal rounds at the 2022 US Open and the 2023 Australian Open. Khachanov also clinched the silver medal in men’s singles at the 2020 Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo.
The 2023 Paris Masters tournament is an ATP Masters 1,000 event and is being played on indoor hard courts at the Accor Arena in Paris between October 30 and November 5. The tournament offers 2.779 million euros (over $2.9 million) in prize money.
The tournament’s reigning champion is Holger Rune of Denmark. Notable Russians to win the tournament in Paris include Marat Safin (2000, 2002, 2004), Nikolai Davydenko (2006), Karen Khachanov (2018) and Daniil Medvedev (2020).