Beijing ATP 500: Muller Upsets Khachanov, Bonzi Falls Short Against Marozsan

The Beijing ATP 500 witnessed Alexandre Muller deliver an impressive performance against Karen Khachanov, while Benjamin Bonzi suffered a straight-sets defeat.

Two French players were on court early in the day at the Beijing ATP 500 tournament. Both Alexandre Muller and Benjamin Bonzi hoped to advance to the second round. The former faced a tough challenge against Karen Khachanov, the world No. 10 and recent finalist at the Toronto Masters 1000.

The two had not faced each other since 2021, and the Russian got off to the better start. With a break in the middle of the first set, the fifth seed closed out the opening set, saving two break points along the way.

In the second set, both players held serve throughout, logically leading to a tiebreak. After coming close to victory, Khachanov ultimately saw the Frenchman level the match at one set apiece.

The third set was equally tight, but Muller, the world No. 38, broke his opponent’s serve at the perfect moment, at 4-4, before consolidating in the following game.

He ultimately triumphed (4-6, 7-6, 6-4 in 2 hours and 48 minutes) and secured his third career victory against a top-10 player. He advances to the round of 16, where he will face Fabian Marozsan. The Hungarian had earlier dominated another French player, Benjamin Bonzi.

After their first-round encounter in Washington during the summer, the two met again, but the outcome was the same as in the United States. Despite a closely contested first set lost in a tiebreak, the world No. 47 ultimately fell in straight sets (7-6, 6-3) and will not reunite with his compatriot Muller for an all-French duel in the next round.