World No. 8 Dominic Thiem is confident Karen Khachanov, his opponent at Mubadala World Tennis Championship, will continue to turn heads in tennis world.

"It was only a question of time until he (Khachanov) makes his breakthrough. He has no weakness. He is a tall player with very fast and powerful strokes. He was achieving a bit too little all year. He finished 11, which is amazing. I am sure he will enter the top 10 this year," Thiem said.

Thiem sees Mubadala as an important tournament that sets tone for the new season.

"I am sure all of us have played many points in the off-season but real match is still something different. So everybody is very much pumped up to play here. Everyone is looking forward to see how the off-season has gone and how hard other players are playing. So everybody will give their 100 per cent."

He said to have ironed out flaws of previous season.

"I made most points of my career in a year but I am still only eighth. I didn't have had good results in the Masters 1000. It is my biggest ambition to do well in Masters 1000. If I do so then I will climb in the rankings. I worked on my usual problem zones like serve and return," he said and noted need to further improve his baseline play.

Thiem hasn't set long-term goals for the next season.

"I have to work hard from the start of the season. I have to see how the season develops. Last year, I was injured in the whole month of March. And the year got a bit more complicated than I thought. So, I don't really set myself goals so early. But I had a nice year. Next year, I intend to play all the four Grand Slams."

Meanwhile, No. 11 Karen Khachanov, who won his first ATP Masters 1000 title at the Rolex Paris Masters, said he is eager to get started.
"I am in good mood. My pre-season went well."

In 2018, he had beaten the likes of Novak Djokovic, Thiem, John Isner and Alexander Zverev but Khachanov is keeping feet to the ground.

"This is a new season and everyone starts from zero. You have to prove yourself again. If you play well, it will reflect in the numbers and rankings. Everybody in the top 100 is now playing well. You have to be focused in each match."

Looking forward to his first match at MWTC, he said: "I will try to bring my game. I will try to show good tennis. I want to go to Doha with good feelings."

Thiem will play Karen Khachanov at the International Tennis Center at Zayed Sports City in Abu Dhabi.

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