Greek tennis star Stefanos Tsitsipas continued his winning streak in the Dubai ATP 500 Open after beating Russia’s Karen Khachanov in 3 sets,7-6 (7-4), 2-6, 6-4 and secured a berth in the tournament’s final 8 against Italy’s setting up a quarter-final game with Italy’s Matteo Berrettini today at 6 pm (Dubai time).
This is the 3rd win for the 11th-ranked Greek, who appears to be gradually finding his stride after struggling recently.
From the get-go, it was clear that the match would be a tough contest for both players, as the opening game of the first set was the longest in duration.
Although Stefanos Tsitsipas had an early break opportunity, Karen Khachanov managed to hold serve and take a 1-0 lead. Tsitsipas responded immediately to level at 1-1, with both players staying neck and neck until 3-3.
Tsitsipas found himself in trouble at 5-3 when Khachanov broke his serve. However, the Greek returned the favor with a break of his own, reducing the deficit to 5-4 and staying in the set. He then forced a tiebreak by leveling at 6-6.
In the tiebreak, the 27-year-old Khachanov made better decisions than his 26-year-old opponent, reaching seven points first and securing the set 7-6 after 50 minutes.
However, the second set unfolded differently for Tsitsipas as the Russian played more aggressively securing an early break and racing to a 4-0 lead, eventually closing out 6-2, to level the match.
In the third set, which lasted 46 minutes, Tsitsipas saved his best for last. With the score at 5-4 in his favor and after both players had held love service games at 1-1 and 4-3, the Greek star finally secured the crucial break he had been searching for in the fourth and sixth games.
With that decisive break, Tsitsipas claimed his sixth game of the set, sealed a 2-1 overall victory, and secured his spot in the quarterfinals of the Dubai tournament.
