Karen Khachanov, ranked 14th in the world, will play Botic van de Zandschulp, ranked 34th, in the opening round of the 2023 ATP Dubai Open on Tuesday.
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Van de Zandschulp has had moments this year where he has appeared to be a part of things and capable of far more than his current world rating of 34. Sadly, he hasn’t exactly been able to turn that into something noteworthy, as the Dutchman has lost four of the nine matches he’s played. Van de Zandschulp didn’t compete until the season’s opening competition, where he made it two victories in a row to go to the quarterfinal. He had lost to eventual finalist Benjamin Bonzi there. Van de Zandschulp did not advance past the second round at the Australian Open, Rotterdam Open, or ATP Doha after that. Due to the fact that van de Zandschulp was the favorite coming into both matches, two of those losses—against Tallon Griekspoor and Alexandre Muller—would have been very painful. Van de Zandschulp’s only chance now against Khachanov is for his opponent to enter this game unprepared after that quite extended rest.
Khachanov hasn’t participated in any competitive tennis for a while, which is surprising considering how brilliantly he performed the last time he was on the court. Khachanov, who began the season with back-to-back performances at the Adelaide International 1 and 2, did not really accomplish much noteworthy there. At the second one, a second round exit came after a quarterfinal at the first one. Karen Khachanov came up with the legendary trick at the Australian Open practically against the grain of the tournament. At the first Grand Slam of the year, he shocked Frances Tiafoe in the third round. He then overcame Sebastian Korda in the quarterfinal to go to the tournament’s final four. He even put up a fight against Stefanos Tsitsipas, who ultimately defeated him. Nonetheless, this month-long gap may be interesting. Given that players today hardly ever have any downtime in between seasons, it would have given him a chance to refuel. As he faces a player who last played on the court less than a week ago, it might also cause some rustiness, which could be a problem.
| Karen Khachanov vs Botic van de Zandschulp | Match details |
|---|---|
| Date | February 28, 2023 |
| Surface | Hard |
| Tournament | Dubai Championship |
| Stage | Round one |
| Time (India) | 08:30 P.M. (can be changed) |
| Opponent | Score |
|---|---|
| Stefanos Tsitsipas | 7-62 6-4 6-76 6-3 (L) |
| Sebastian Korda | 7-65 6-3 3-0 ret. (W) |
| Yoshihito Nishioka | 6-0 6-0 7-64 (W) |
| Frances Tiafoe | 6-3 6-4 3-6 7-69 (W) |
| Jason Murray Kubler | 6-4 5-7 6-4 6-2 (W) |
| Opponent | Score |
|---|---|
| Alexandre Muller | 6-2 6-4 (L) |
| Ilya Ivashka | 6-2 7-5 (W) |
| Daniil Medvedev | 6-2 6-2 (L) |
| Quentin Halys | 5-7 6-4 7-64 (W) |
| Tallon Griekspoor | 6-4 6-4 6-4 (L) |
The only time they had previously faced each other was in the quarterfinals of the Great Ocean Road Open in Melbourne in 2021, which Khachanov had won in three sets.
Karen Khachanov and Botic van de Zandschulp will take on each other in the first round of the 2023 ATP Dubai Championship on February 28.
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