LONDON: A delighted Karen Khachanov rated his latest Wimbledon performance a nine out of 10 after sealing his place in the quarter-finals for the first time since 2021.
Khachanov, who is seeded 17th in this year’s draw, disposed of Poland’s Kamil Majchrzak 6-4, 6-2, 6-3. The Russian won 79% of his first service points and blasted 44 winners during his latest performance.
“If I can rate my game today, it’s a 9 out of 10 I would say in all aspects. I’m really pleased with that performance,” Khachanov said afterwards.
“It’s great that I managed to be back in the quarterfinals after 2024, when I didn’t manage to go further than the second week in the slam.” He added.
The triumph comes after what has been a frustrating past few years for the 29-year-old when it comes to playing at The All England Club. In 2022, he was prevented from playing due to the ban on Russian players. In 2023, he was ruled out due to a stress fracture in his S1 sacrum bone. The following year, he was beaten in the second round by Quentin Halys.
Khachanov’s progress in this year’s tournament has been a roller-coaster. Before taking on Majchrzak, he had already spent nine hours and 38 minutes on the court. In his two previous matches, he was taken to five sets by qualifier Shintaro Mochizuki and then Nuno Burges.
“Physically, I felt really good today,” Khachanov said of his current fitness.
“Yesterday, I had one day off between matches. I recovered pretty well with my fitness coach and my physio doing the necessary work. I’m in a good place, to be honest.”
Khachanov, who made his Wimbledon debut in 2017, is through to the last eight of a major for the sixth time in his career. He is one of 12 active players to have reached the quarter-finals of every Grand Slam tournament on at least one occasion. Overall, he has claimed 70 wins at Grand Slams against 32 losses.
Awaiting him next will be Taylor Fritz, who won his match via retirement after Jordan Thompson was forced to retire when down 6-1, 3-0, due to back pain. It has been five years since they played against each other, which was at the United Cup in January 2020.
“It’s going to be a tough match. I think he and I play a similar game style,” said Fritz.
“So it is going to be very much who shows up on the day. I feel confident that I’m playing well.”
Meanwhile, Khachanov believes a crucial aspect of his upcoming match will be the mental element, as well as his physical fitness.
“It’s all about mentally staying there, focused, determined, and calm. It’s like you need to play confidently, at the same time controlling the situation, and be patient,” he explained.
“This is basically the mental aspect of the game. Everybody knows how to hit a forehand and a backhand. But in important moments, that’s about decisions, which decisions you take, to go for it or to stay in the rally, and put the pressure on the opponent. That’s what each player has their own feeling in those moments, especially.”
Khachanov’s best Grand Slam performances were reaching the semi-finals of the 2022 US Open and 2023 Australian Open.
