Karen Khachanov wants change to happen at the Canadian Open next year despite reaching the final

Karen Khachanov has not been entirely happy with everything at the Canadian Open, despite reaching the final.

Khachanov got revenge over Alexander Zverev to reach the final of the Canadian Open for the first time in his career.

This has carried on his impressive form since Khachanov reached the Wimbledon quarterfinals last month.

Khachanov has played some impressive tennis during his time in Canada this year, but he wants something to change for the Masters 1000 tournament in 2026.

Photo by Mert Alper Dervis/Anadolu via Getty Images

Karen Khachanov calls for the Canadian Open to make change next year

The Canadian Open has come under much scrutiny this year, particularly for now being held over 12 days instead of just one week like in previous years.

Only two of the nine Masters 1000 tournaments now remain in the traditional one week format, something that Khachanov’s opponent Zverev believes no-one on the ATP Tour likes.

When discussing how the expanded event has changed his preparation, Khachanov revealed that his sleep pattern needed to be alternated mid-tournament after going from playing lots of morning matches to night matches.

“Yeah, to be honest, first part of the tournament it was different, because I was playing actually first match always at 11:00, so I had to go to sleep earlier, I had to wake up earlier,” Khachanov explained in his post-match press conference. “Having traffic here coming to the site, one hour every day, so I was sleeping in the car.

“But then from quarterfinals actually the schedule changed completely, 180 degrees, and I had late matches at 7:00 p.m. or second after 7:00.

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“So actually, I had these long days, and I tried to go to sleep later, I tried to wake up later. So, yeah, two completely different tournaments, I would say, during the same event.”

The new format is not the only thing that has been criticised, with Andrey Rublev also slamming the conditions at the Canadian Open this year.

This is something that Khachanov also admitted he was not keen on at the start of the tournament, before also revealing his belief that the tournament would be better as a nine, ten day event,

“You know, actually when I came here I didn’t like the conditions (laughing),” said Khachanov. “I can say it now. But that’s all about adjusting and adapting. I think tennis is all about that.

“Every week we play in different event. Even though it’s on hard court, but at the end it’s different, let’s say, humidity, different heat, cold. Sometimes you play day match or night match. That’s why a lot of things that matter sometimes on the results, so that’s why I think the question is about who adapts better.

“And then, once you pass one, two rounds, then you start to play better and better, and then these are kind of battles that we had today, it’s a really good match, high level. So you have to come to that stage, obviously. Second question?”

Khachanov added, “Oh, format. Yeah, to be honest, it a little bit feels too long. It’s like in the middle between Grand Slam and a Masters what it was before. From one side, we play best-of-three sets, we have every day, every second day, day off, which I can’t complain.

“But at the same time maybe it’s, to stay mentally focused, yeah, it takes a little bit longer time. I would say maybe nine days, eight days, 10 days maybe, because it’s 12-day, right? Now it’s 12 days. So it would work better I think for me. I mean, for me. I guess for everybody, but that’s my opinion.”

Karen Khachanov makes ATP Masters 1000 history in Toronto

One of the only ATP 1000 tournaments that is still held over a week is the Paris Masters, which Khachanov won in 2018.

That is the only other time Khachanov has reached the final of a Masters 1000 tournament, and he has now made ATP history.

As a result, Khachanov now has the longest time between reaching two finals at Masters 1000 level, lasting nearly seven years.

Khachanov will now play Ben Shelton, as he looks to repeat what he did at the Paris Masters in 2018.

The Canadian Open final in Toronto will take place on Thursday, August 7, at 7:30pm local time.

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