An incredible finish! A remarkable tie-break! @karenkhachanov survives a four-set epic with Frances Tiafoe to reach the fourth round, taking the match 6-3 6-4 3-6 7-6(9) @wwos • @espn • @Eurosport • @wowowtennis • #AusOpen • #AO2023
Karen Khachanov halts Tiafoe's comeback run in the 4th set to advance to second week in Melbourne
ATPFriday, 20 January 2023 at 13:00
Frances Tiafoe was in the midst of a comeback against Karen Khachanov but the Russian was able to evade with a couple of crucial rallies in the 4th set.
Khachanov opened this season well, far better than he generally opens his seasons. The level has been steady since the start and this win and results aren't that surprising. He's always played his best tennis in the biggest events and this is no different. From the start, he was playing much better than Tiafoe and he was very focused.
6-3 was the score in the first set as Khachanov served well and added 13 winners to get the job done. Tiafoe played better in the second set but Khachanov was still more focused and used that to his advantage to get it done 6-4. The 3rd set is finally when Tiafoe arrived at his best and it was also a ser where his opponent dropped a bit.
It wasn't a huge drop from Khachanov but a major rise from Tiafoe who had 17 winners in that one. The score was 6-3 and Tiafoe even opened the final set with a 1-0 lead and a break. He would give it up too easily which proved very costly. It gave Khachanov further confidence and he started to play much better.
Neither found any breakthrough despite some chances for both and we arrived in the tiebreak. Tiafoe opened better getting to 6-1 and having multiple consecutive save points. He didn't use either and grew more frustrated with each one lost. In the end, Khachanov ended the super late rally to finish the match 11-9.
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