History for home nation on quarterfinal day at Almaty Open

Ravi Ubha

Quarterfinal day at the Almaty Open marks a historic occasion for Kazakhstan.

For the first time, two home players feature in the last eight at the same edition of Kazakhstan’s lone ATP stop.

And if Alexander Shevchenko and Beibit Zhukayev both win Friday, it would give Kazakhstan two semifinalists at the same tournament for the first time ever.

Shevchenko appearing in the quarterfinals couldn’t be classified as a shock. He was the highest-ranked of four players from Kazakhstan in the main draw and was also the higher ranked player in his two wins. 

But Zhukayev making the quarterfinals is somewhat of a surprise. The wildcard was the lowest-ranked player from Kazakhstan in the main draw — outside the top 200 — and never previously achieved an ATP quarterfinal.

Good fortune fell his way, however, when fifth seed Tomas Machac — who beat Carlos Alcaraz on the way to a semifinal at last week’s Shanghai Masters — retired after four games Thursday in their encounter at the Almaty Arena.

Shevchenko won’t have the ranking advantage when he tangles with fourth seed Francisco Cerundolo.

Yet the world No. 61 might hold the psychological edge, since he defeated the Argentine with the devastating forehand 7-6 (7) 7-5.

«It was super, super tough,» said Shevchenko. «It went my way because I got a bit more lucky maybe but let’s see here. It’s going to be home support here so I hope I will have an advantage.

«Francisco is an unbelievable player.»

Cerundolo, a title winner on both clay and grass, rued letting slip a 4-2 lead in the opening set.

Khachanov notes Zhukayev serve

Zhukayev and his third-seeded opponent, Karen Khachanov, also faced off in Shanghai. Not this year, but in 2023.

The 24-year-old bagged his first ATP win before running into the two-time Grand Slam semifinalist and losing in three sets. The match left a mark on Khachanov, however.

«It was ridiculous how hard he was serving,» said Khachanov. «It was very difficult. Of course, he will be super pumped to play at home with the crowd.»

Zhukayev thumped 20 aces but only won 30% of his second-serve points compared to Khachanov’s 73.

Khachanov confronts a second straight big server after beating Otto Virtanen in two tiebreaks.

«I would say it was a good practice and preparation for my match» against Zhukayev.

Top seeds Tiafoe, Tabilo also in action

Top seed Frances Tiafoe got three sets of match practice against Dan Evans on Thursday in one of the tussles of the week.

The 15th-ranked Tiafoe overturned a one-set deficit again against the versatile 34-year-old and next meets 85th-ranked Aleksandar Vukic.

Tiafoe bids for a second semifinal in Kazakhstan after 2020 and won’t take the Australian lightly. Vukic beat defending champion Adrian Mannarino on Thursday and now owns a 9-5 record in his last 14 matches against higher-ranked opponents.

The first quarterfinal of the day pits the Canadian-born Alejandro Tabilo against Canada’s Gabriel Diallo.

Diallo, like Zhukayev a potent server playing in a first ATP quarterfinal, looks set to break the coveted Top 100 barrier with a win. Both players haven’t been broken so far this week.

Second-seed Tabilo endured a rocky last couple of months though overall has flourished in 2024 — making three finals and a Masters semifinal.

He enjoys competing in Kazakhstan, too.

«This tournament has been incredible,» said the world No. 23. «Everything is very well organized. The people are so helpful, the courts and conditions are great.»

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