Karen Khachanov called on fans to be respectful in Saturday’s Paris Masters semi-final with Ugo Humbert, but he should expect no favours against the home player.
The 2018 champion is back in the last four for the first time since clinching the title and aims to clinch one more win to take him into Sunday’s final against Alexander Zverev or Holger Rune.
Match preview
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While Khachanov likely expected a tough quarterfinal match against Grigor Dimitrov, the Bulgarian appeared hampered by injury and far from his best, allowing the Russian to cruise to a comfortable 6-2, 6-3 victory.
That success took him into the semis in Paris after a six-year wait, the first time since he clinched the title against Novak Djokovic in Bercy.
With 12 ATP Tour victories in the last 13 matches, the seven-time titlist is currently one of the in-form players on the men’s tour and hopes to advance to another final to right perceived wrongs of Sunday’s Vienna loss to Jack Draper.
Having faced two close battles in his tournament opener and round two, saving a match point in the former and beating Basel champion Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard in the second round, the 28-year-old hopes to silence the home crowd against another Frenchman.
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Humbert’s momentum cannot be watered down, with the six-time tour champion’s surging confidence unmistakable in his home Masters 1000 tournament.
While he reached the ATP 500 decider in Tokyo, early exits to Gael Monfils in Shanghai and David Goffin in Basel probably diminished the optimism heading into the French capital.
However, willed on by a partisan home crowd, the 15th seed has flourished on home turf, taking down highest seed Carlos Alcaraz to advance to his fourth last-eight match and second this season before going one better against Jordan Thompson set up Saturday’s semi-final.
It marks Humbert’s first Masters 1000 semi-final, and he hopes to maintain the high level that has brought him here to make Sunday’s decider.
Tournament so far
Karen Khachanov:
First round: vs. Christopher O’Connell 6-4 3-6 7-8(6)
Second round: vs. Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard 6-7(12) 6-1 6-4
Third round: vs. Alexei Popyrin 7-6(5) 6-4
Quarter-final: vs. Grigor Dimitrov 6-2 6-3
Ugo Humbert:
First round: vs. Brandon Nakashima 6-3 4-6 6-4
Second round: vs. Marcos Giron 6-3 6-2
Third round: vs. vs. Carlos Alcaraz 6-1 3-6 7-5
Quarter-final: vs. Jordan Thompson 6-2 7-6(4)
Head To Head
Tokyo Olympics (2021) – Quarter-final: Khachanov 7-6(4) 4-6 6-3
Both players have met only once, at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, with Khachanov winning in three sets.
Humbert, a six-time titlist, aims to avenge that loss to advance to another final for a shot at clinching a third title in 2024.
We say: Khachanov to win in three sets
The second semi-final in Paris is tough to call, as a case could be made for both players in excellent form — Humbert has the home crowd and momentum, while Khachanov is no slouch at this level and has experience of beating a home player at the ongoing event.
It could go either way, but Khachanov’s experience and ability to handle pressure might give him a slight edge over the Frenchman in Bercy.
