Follow us on Google Discover Following the conclusion of the Asian swing, the indoor hard-court season is officially underway.
Three ATP 250 tournaments are currently up for grabs, with stars looking to fine-tune their games ahead of the final Masters 1000 tournament in Paris.
The likes of Holger Rune and Casper Ruud are competing at the Stockholm Open, while Lorenzo Musetti and Felix Auger-Aliassime have opted for the European Open in Brussels, as their battle for a spot in the ATP Finals continues.
Much further east, the Almaty Open in Kazakhstan is taking place, headlined by former US Open champion Daniil Medvedev, who has found form recently.
Photo by Lintao Zhang/Getty Images
There have already been a number of upsets in Almaty, with the likes of Brandon Nakashima and Flavio Cobolli bowing out of the tournament.
Now, the top seed has exited the competition and will leave the world’s top ten as a result.
Top seed knocked out of the Almaty Open after shock upset
Following a defeat to Jan-Lennard Struff in three sets, 2024 Almaty Open champion Karen Khachanov has seen his title defence come to an end.
The Russian took the first set against Struff, but the German fought his way back into the contest to win 4-6, 7-6, 6-3.
Consequently, Khachanov, currently ranked 10th, will leave the ATP top ten after just two months.
Wow.
Khachanov fails to defend his title and will leave the top 10.
He got a final to defend in Vienna next week as well. Has been struggling with form. https://t.co/iOqU4aTwij
— José Morgado (@josemorgado) October 16, 2025
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Khachanov re-entered the top ten in August for the first time since 2019, following a finals run at the Canadian Open, where he ultimately lost to Ben Shelton.
Having failed to defend his crown in Almaty, however, he will drop one spot in the rankings to 11th, with Rune taking his place.
The 29-year-old, struggling for form at the moment, will have more points to defend in Vienna next week, where he made the final last year.
Karen Khachanov’s poor run of form on the ATP tour recently.
Khachanov failed to build on his run in Toronto, having recorded several disappointing campaigns since then.
He lost in the fourth round of the Cincinnati Open before crashing out in round two at the US Open, losing a brutal five-set marathon against Kamil Majchrzak.
His Asian swing was short-lived, with Khachanov losing in his opening match at both the China Open and the Shanghai Masters.
Canadian Open – FinalistCincinnati Open – Round of 16US Open – Round of 64China Open – Round of 32Shanghai Masters – Round of 64Almaty Open – Round of 16
Khachanov has tallied a record of 30 wins to 21 losses this season and has yet to hoist a title in 2025.
The former Grand Slam semifinalist will hope to go far in both Vienna and at the Paris Masters in his pursuit of returning to the world’s top ten.