Karen Khachanov called on fans to be respectful on Saturday Paris Masters semi-final with Ugo Humbertbut he shouldn't expect any favors against the home player.

The 2018 champions are in the last four for the first time since winning the title and will be looking to secure another win to progress to Sunday's final against them Alexander Zverev or Holger Rune.

Game preview

© Imago

While Khachanov probably expected a tough quarterfinal match against him Grigor DimitrovThe Bulgarian appeared to be hampered by injury and far from his best, allowing the Russian to claim a comfortable 6-2, 6-3 victory.

This success took him to the semi-finals in Paris after a six-year wait, the first time since winning the title against Paris Novak Djokovic in Bercy.

At 12 ATP Tour With wins in his last 13 games, the seven-time champion is currently one of the in-form players on the men's tour and is hoping to reach another final to make amends for the perceived mistake of the Vienna defeat on Sunday Jack Draper.

He had to fight two close duels in his tournament opener and in the second round, secured a match point in the first game and defeated the Basel champions Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard In the second round, the 28-year-old hopes to silence the home crowd against another Frenchman.

© Imago

There's no denying Humbert's momentum as the six-time Tour champion's growing confidence is unmistakable at his home Masters 1000 tournament.

While he reached the ATP 500 decider in Tokyo, he was eliminated early Gael Monfils in Shanghai and David Goffin in Basel may have reduced optimism on the way to the French capital.

But with the will of a partisan home crowd, the 15th seed thrived on home turf and defeated the top seed Carlos Alcaraz so he can advance to his fourth game in the last eight and his second game this season before facing him again Jordan Thompson to prepare for the semi-finals on Saturday.

It's Humbert's first Masters 1000 semi-final and he'll be hoping to maintain the high level that got him here and advance to Sunday's decider.

tournament so far

Karen Khachanow:

First round: vs. Christopher O'Connell 6-4 3-6 7-8(6)
Second round: against Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard 6-7(12), 6-1 6-4
Third round: vs. Alexei Popyrin 7-6(5) 6-4
Quarterfinals: against Grigor Dimitrov 6-2 6-3

Ugo Humbert:

First round: against Brandon Nakashima 6-3 4-6 6-4
Second round: vs. Marcos Giron 6-3 6-2
Third round: vs. vs. Carlos Alcaraz 6-1 3-6 7-5
Quarterfinals: against Jordan Thompson 6-2 7-6(4)

Head to head

Tokyo Olympics (2021) – Quarterfinals: Khachanov 7-6(4), 4-6, 6-3

Both players met only once, at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, with Khachanov winning in three sets.

Humbert, a six-time champion, will want to avenge this defeat to advance to another final and have a chance at a third title in 2024.

We say: Khachanov wins in three sets

The second semi-final in Paris is difficult to say as both players could be in great form – Humbert has the home crowd and the momentum, while Khachanov is no slouch at this level and has experience of beating a home player in the ongoing event.

It could go either way, but Khachanov's experience and ability to handle pressure could give him a slight advantage over the Frenchman in Bercy.

ID:557128:1false2false3false:QQ:: from DB desktop :LenBod:collect6546:

Previews via email