Karen Khachanov created headlines for being angry with Ugo Humbert after their Paris Masters semifinal, but the Frenchman has attempted to calm the situation by publicly and privately apologizing to Khachanov.
The 2024 Paris Masters was a memorable tournament for Humbert. He achieved a stunning 6-1, 3-6, 7-5 triumph against Carlos Alcaraz in the round of 16 after a match filled with stunning shot-making from both men.
Humbert backed that up by defeating Jordan Thompson to reach the semifinal of his home event. Khachanov, who won the Almaty Open and was the runner-up to Jack Draper at his previous tournaments before the Paris Masters, played him in the semifinal.
After a tight and high-quality opening set, Khachanov took the opening set 8-6 in a first-set tiebreak. Humbert then hit back by winning the second 6-4 to force a decider in front of a partisan home crowd.
Unfortunately, what promised to be an exciting third set was derailed by Khachanov sustaining an injury that severely hampered him. That allowed Humbert to seal a 6-7, 6-4, 6-3 victory and book his place in the final.
However, Humbert's actions in the final set received criticism. Despite his opponent visibly struggling with a physical issue, the 26-year-old wildly celebrated and played up to the crowd after several points.
Khachanov was enraged by Humbert's behavior, slamming him during the handshake at the net and in an interview afterward, saying the Frenchman's actions during the semifinal proved he had no respect.
Alexander Zverev thrashed Humbert 6-2, 6-2 in the final. Khachanov may have viewed it as karma after finding his opponent's actions in the final set of their match to be so out of order.
However, Humbert has now addressed what happened in the contest against Khachanov. To the runner-up in Paris' credit, he apologized for what happened and took responsibility, outlining his respect for Khachanov in a statement on social media.
"I wanted to say a few words following the controversy after my semi-final against Karen. After the physio's intervention, I thought it was cramp, as I was almost cramping myself after 2 and a half hours of intense play. I've lost other matches this year in similar circumstances and this time I remained very focused on the goal."
"I'm sorry to see that this has been misunderstood and even worse, described as a lack of fair play. I have contacted him personally to apologize. I have great respect for Karen and for all the opponents I've had to meet so far. This will serve as a lesson to me to act better in the future."
"Thank you to everyone who has supported me this week. From every point of view, this tournament taught me a lot. I'd also like to say a few words about my disappointment for not being able to defend my title in Metz, where I'll be spending some time this week."
Humbert's withdrawal from the ongoing Moselle Open in Metz is also understandable after his efforts last week, but it was undoubtedly disappointing for the fans since he grew up in Metz as a child.