Karen Khachanov advances to second round of Australian Open

Russian tennis player of Armenian descent Karen Khachanov defeated American Alex Michelsen in the first round of the Australian Open, held on the hard courts of Melbourne.

Khachanov, seeded 15th, won the match 4–6, 6–4, 6–3, 5–7, 6–3 after 3 hours and 55 minutes of play.

The head-to-head record between the two players now stands at 2–1 in Khachanov’s favor.

In the second round, the 29-year-old Khachanov will face the winner of the match between Christopher O’Connell (Australia, wild card) and Nishesh Basavareddy (USA, qualifier).