Karen Khachanov did plenty of damage in the 2017 french open draw. He eliminated two veterans en route to the fourth round, those being Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic and John Isner of the United States. It could be that the Grand Slam tournaments, going forward, will be much more about Khachanov than they will be about either Berdych or Isner.
However, the 21-year old Russian still didn't have much to contend with Scottish player and World No. 1 Andy Murray on Monday from Roland Garros. Murray defeated Khachanov in straight sets without the need for a single tiebreaker 6-3, 6-4, 6-4.
Khachanov's future looks bright
For Khachanov, the result from the French Open was certainly promising. Not only did he defeat two established veterans but in facing Murray, the Russian will have played in an internationally-televised match that millions would have been watching.
That will certainly help him make a name for himself as he searches to carve out a niche on the ATP Tour. Furthermore, the 2017 French Open was the first event that Khachanov contested at Roland Garros. With improvement, he can be expected to challenge for the later rounds in the years ahead.
Murray looks to end slump in days ahead
But for Murray, the time is certainly now as his 30th birthday passed a few weeks ago. With the win over Khachanov, he advanced to the quarterfinals in the top half of the draw - the half that doesn't have the elite clay courters.
2015 champion Stan Wawrinka remained alive in that half of the draw at the time of writing, but otherwise, the elite clay-court talent is somewhat thin.
The bottom half is where you find Dominic Thiem, Novak Djokovic, and Rafael Nadal. Murray's opponent in the quarters will be decided on Monday (weather permitting) and will be either Kei Nishikori or Fernando Verdasco.
At the time of writing those two players were one-set apiece in their fourth-round match.
Murray has slumped through the first half of the 2017 season. Certainly, his clay-court results leading into the French Open were not anything amazing. However, with a quarterfinal against either Nishikori or Verdasco, Murray can certainly entertain notions of making the Roland Garros semifinals.
Furthermore, the Scot beat Stan Wawrinka in the semifinals last year to make his only career final at the French Open. If Murray can push through to the final, he would surely be an underdog against either Nadal or Djokovic. A match-up against Dominic Thiem might be regarded as more of a coin toss.
However, Thiem seems to be more adept on the clay-court surface than Murray. But even just a runner-up finish for the Scot in Paris would help erase some below par results that have plagued his 2017 season thus far and set him up with some confidence heading into the grass-court season.
