Jannik Sinner came back from one set down to beat Karen Khachanov 5-7 6-3 6-3 after 2 hours and 10 minutes on Aranxta Sanchez Stadium reaching the quarter final at the Madrid Mutua Open for the first time in his career.
Sinner saved both break points he faced in the third set.
Sinner will face either this year’s Barcelona Open champion Casper Ruud or Felix Auger Aliassime.
Khachanov took a 0-40 lead on return in the third game of the first set before earning the only break of the set at 5-5. Khachanov served out the first set at love.
Sinner converted his first break point of the match. The Italian player dropped just five points on his own serve to win the second set 6-3 levelling the match at one set apiece.
Khachanov earned an early break point in the second game, but Sinner saved it before earning the only break of the third set in the fifth game.
Sinner broek Khachanov for the second time in the ninth game to win the decider 6-3.
Sinner has extended his lead in his head-to-head series to 4-1 against Khachanov.
“I think today was really tough, because at some points he served really well, so it was really tough to win. I made a couple of mistakes in the first set when he broke me, but this can happen. In the second set I tried to stay focused immediately, I broke him and the confidence level raised a bit. I was struggling when I was break points down in the early stages of the third set. I went through them, serving really well. Then after I felt a little bit better so I am really happy and let’s see what’s coming in the next round”, said Sinner.
Sinner started the season with his first Grand Slam title at the Australian Open. He maintained his form by winning the ATP 500 tournament in Rotterdam. He lost to Carlos Alcaraz in the semifinal in Indian Wells before claiming his first Miami Open title. He lost to eventual champion Stefanos Tsistipas in the semifinal of the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters.
Sinner felt discomfort in his hip after rallying from 3-5 down in the second set of his third round match against Russia’s Pavel Kotov. Khachanov stopped a 23-match losing streak to top-10 players last spring in Miami and reached the second week in four of his last five Grand Slam appearances. The two-time Roland Garros quarter finalist beat Danil Medvedev en route to the quarter finals in Monte-Carlo. The former top eight rallied from a set down in his opening match against Roberto Bautista Agut in Madrid earlier in this tournament.
