Karen Khachanov clinch seventh tour-title in Kazakhstan

Karen Khachanov wins his seventh tour-level title in a dramatic fashion on Sunday at the Almaty Open.

The 28-year-old Russian improved to 7-2 in tour-level finals after defeating Gabriel Diallo 6-2, 5-7, 6-3 in three sets to lift his second title of the season, first since February.

“A lot of emotions, now I’m relieved and super happy,” said Khachanov after his title triumph in Kazakhstan.

“You can’t expect a final to be easy, without tension, but it was until 6-2, 4-2. Then he started to relax, go for his shots a little bit more, and he suddenly turned the match around.”

With the triumph in Almaty, Khachanov secured his first ATP Tour title on indoor hard courts since defeating Novak Djokovic to claim the 2018 ATP Masters 1000 Paris title.

It is also the second time that Khachanov has clinched multiple titles in a season, after succeeding in Doha in February.