French Open: Karen Khachanov takes out del Potro shortly before the end - now against Thiem
Shortly before the store closed in Roland Garros, Russian Karen Khachanov celebrated a four-set win over last year's semi-finalist Juan Martin del Potro .
by Florian Goosmann
last edit: Jun 03, 2019, 10:04 pm
The 23-year-old won 7: 5, 6: 3, 3: 6 and 6: 3 after 3 hours and 9 minutes of play - and the match should not have lasted much longer in the light of the onset of darkness.
Set one was ungrateful for the Argentinean: both 2: 2 and 5: 5 he had breakballs - but in the end it was Khachanov who took his first chance to win the set. Set two slipped "Delpo" quickly out of his hands, in the first three games he made only two points.
But the tandil tower did not rise, countered an early rebreak in the third set with a new break and served, despite resistance, to the connection.
Del Potro, a contact lens wearer, was then missed eye drops when changing sentences and, due to the dusk, opened his eyes wide before the return. In the fourth set he ran early after a break to save himself in a game abandonment, but it would have needed the equalization. The ninth in the world rankings was able to avoid a second break for Khachanov, but shortly before the end he came back to a 15:30 serve on Khachanov, who served dry - with an ace to the match.
Khachanov, currently number 11 in the world and then top ten after the French Open, is in Paris for the first time in a Grand Slam quarter-final. Opponents there: Dominic Thiem .
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