Karen Khachanov is looking to end the year in the top 10 and score wins over the big three ahead of the final grand slam of 2019.
The Russian is currently ranked eight in the world but has a fourth round appearance to defend at the US Open as well as a masters 1000 title in Paris.
After a slow start to the season, Khachanov is looking to end the year strong as he looks to break the mould of the ‘big three’ at grand slams.
Speaking to Russian Outlet, RBC Sport, the 23 year-old set out his ambitions for the rest of the season, “It would be great to be able to secure my place in the top-10, considering that I did not start the season well,” Khachanov claimed.
“Last year my goal was to finish in the top 20, and I finished 11th. If you can end up with a better goal than you proposed, then even better, but you can not take anything for granted because everything can change in a tournament.
“I would love to be able to meet my goals while the Big-3 continues to play. I am happy to play against them in several tournaments, having won against Djokovic in Paris.
“Yes, they are the ones who win the Grand Slams, but if you notice, Zverev, Tsitsipas, Medvedev, these players are the ones who are already in the top 10 with the rest of the legends, we are at a good level and I do not think we are that far from them, but we can not relax for a moment. “
It is clear that Khachanov feels like the ‘next generation’ should be doing better to try and break the trio of Djokovic, Federer and Nadal in grand slams.
But with Stan Wawrinka to be the last man to break the trend of the big three at grand slams, it will be a tricky task as the Russian is yet to reach a grand slam semi-final.
Also in the interview, Khachanov spoke about the difficulties of earning money on the ATP tour and how much is spent on his team, “When I was in the top-150, around 2015, I spent around 200K on my team,” Khachanov said.
“As of 2016 I had the possibility to give some extra classes with a physical trainer; Now my coach, my physical trainer and my physio travel with me. Thus, annual spending has increased to 400-500K, including salaries, travel and hotel expenses. All this you pay yourself.
“In many European countries there are large taxes, as in the USA. On the page of the ATP, they write the figures without taking into account the taxes. I do not know why they do it like that.
“With taxes, you can safely discount 40% of my earnings. Add what you spend on your team and you get a totally different figure. I’m not complaining at all, but I’d like people to understand it.”
The next tournament for Khachanov is the ATP 500 event in Washington, which starts on the 29th of July.
