US Open 2022: Pablo Carreno Busta vs Karen Khachanov preview, head-to-head, prediction, odds and pick
Match Details
Fixture: (12) Pablo Carreno Busta vs (27) Karen Khachanov
Date: September 04, 2022
Tournament: US Open 2022
Round: Fourth round (Round of 16)
Venue: New York, United States
Category: Grand Slam
Surface: Hard
Prize money: $60,102,000
Live telecast: USA - ESPN & ESPN2 | Canada - TSN | UK - Amazon Prime Video | India - Sony Liv, Sony Ten & Sony Six
Pablo Carreno Busta vs Karen Khachanov preview
World No. 15 Pablo Carreno Busta will face off against World No. 31 Karen Khachanov in the fourth round of the US Open on Sunday.
The 12th seed is having a successful season so far, with 28 wins against 18 losses. He won the Canadian Open by defeating Hubert Hurkacz in a tight three-set battle in the final. The 31-year-old also advanced to the final of the Barcelona Open, where he was defeated in straight sets by Carlos Alcaraz.
At the 2022 US Open, Carreno Busta overcame wild card entrant and 2020 US Open champion Dominic Thiem in four sets. He was able to limit his second-round match against Alexander Bublik to four sets, winning 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 7-6 (5).
In the third round, Carreno Busta broke Alex de Minaur's serve in the first game. After breaking De Minaur's serve thrice in the first set, the World No. 15 found it relatively simple to take the first set 6-1. The Spaniard's defensive strategy helped reduce his unforced errors to nine and take the second set 6-1 again, breaking the Australian's serve twice.
After being down two sets to love, De Minaur improved his performance and held his serve throughout the set, not even giving Carreno Busta a break point in the third. De Minaur broke the 12th seed in the eighth game and held his serve in the next to take the set 6-3.
Both players showcased a phenomenal performance and held their serve until the tiebreak in the fourth set. The Spaniard managed to maintain an 88% win on his first serve and a 100% net point win in the fourth set. He finished the game in style by hitting a tweener at matchpoint.
Karen Khachanov, on the other end, has had a mediocre season thus far, with only 26 victories in 46 matches. He is yet to win a title this year, although he did reach the final of the ATP 250 event in Adelaide, where he was defeated in straight sets by Gael Monfils.
Khachanov was triumphant over Denis Kudla and Thiago Monteiro in the first and second rounds of the US Open, respectively. Khachanov faced Jack Draper in the third round. The Russian broke Draper in the second game of the first set and held his serve in the following game to take a 3-0 lead in the first set. Both players held their serves from thereonforth and Khachanov took the first set 6-3.
In response, the Brit hit 10 winners and maintained a 75% win on first serve to take the second set 6-4. Tied at one-set-all, both players looked forward to taking advantage of each other in the third set.
Both players performed admirably in the third set with some intense rallies and long games. Unfortunately, Draper suffered an upper right hamstring injury at 5-6 and was forced to retire mid-match and Khachanov won the third round with a walkover 6-3 4-6 6-5 (retd.).
Jack Draper retires trailing 3-6, 6-4, 5-6.
Groin/thigh/upper leg/hamstring area.
A sad end to his US Open.
Khachanov will face Pablo Carreno Busta or Alex de Minaur in the R16.
Pablo Carreno Busta vs Jack Draper head-to-head
The pair have played each other eight times and Karen Khachanov leads the head-to-head 5-3 over Pablo Carreno Busta. The duo last met at the ATP Masters in Rome earlier this year, with Khachanov winning in three sets.
Pablo Carreno Busta vs Jack Draper odds
(All odds are sourced from BetMGM)
Pablo Carreno Busta vs Jack Draper Prediction
The World No. 15 was a two-time semifinalist at the 2017 and 2020 US Open. Both players possess excellent defensive skills. The 31-year-old Spaniard is very consistent with his shot-making, in addition to being a great mover on the court who looks to grind his opponents by extending rallies and extracting errors from of them.
Khachanov has always played tennis with an aggressive mindset, looking to hit bigger and bigger with each shot in a rally. His game is based on the first strike, off both the serve and the return, but he can also hit big shots several times in succession if pitted against steady counterpunchers.
Karen Khachanov's head-to-head record will certainly be an advantage and if he can maintain his aggression without making several unforced errors, the Russian will be the favorite to reach his first US Open quarterfinal.
Pick: Karen Khachanov to win in four sets.