By Chris Oddo | Wednesday October 25, 2017
He’s one of the best under a roof and he’s proved it all year. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga improved to 17-2 indoors in 2017 when he erased a one-set deficit to take down rising Russian Karen Khachanov, 6-7(2), 6-4, 6-3. Tsonga advances to the second round of the Erste Bank Open in Vienna where he will face Bosnia’s Damir Dzumhur.
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“I’m playing good indoors. I know that,” said Tsonga. “Hopefully I will be able to continue like this until the end of the season.”
Tsonga cracked eight aces and saved four of five break points to improve to 2-0 against Khachanov.
He kept his London hopes alive but he’ll need to continue winning to have any chance of passing the players that are currently ahead of him in the Race to London standings. He’s currently in 12th in the standings but could move to ninth with a title in Vienna.
It’s not on his mind—yet.
“It’s really far now,” he said. “I don’t expect to be there. I just expect to play good tennis, every day, my best level. That’s the most important, just play and that’s it.”
Dzumhur defeated Ricardas Berankis for the second time in as many weeks to set up his second-round clash with Tsonga. Also winning on Wednesday in Vienna was Diego Schwartzman, who took out Fabio Fognini in three sets, and Philipp Kohlschreiber, who defeated Pierre-Hugues Herbert in straight-sets to reach the quarterfinals.