Chess King Karen Khachanov plots checkmate against Grandmaster Novak Djokovic at Roland Garros

WATCH: Khachanov has needed four sets in his last two matches at Roland Garros, including his third-round against Thanasi Kokkinakis.

PARIS—Karen Khachanov has been seeing the tennis court like a chess board for the last 12 months, making all the right moves to build a career resurgence that has seen him reach three straight major quarterfinals and put him in pole position to return to the Top 10 after storming into the last eight at Roland Garros on Sunday.

And that’s no idle metaphor: Khachanov is a consummate chess nut.

“I like to play with my other coach José Clavet from Spain,” he explained after rallying from a set down to defeat Lorenzo Sonego on Court Suzanne-Lenglen. “I used to play a lot with him, even a few matches during the day, you know, in the morning to start the brain working and going.”

Asked to compare the two sports, Khachanov mused that chess could be helping him think one move ahead on the tennis court.

“I think when you open your head and you are really full into the game, you see the field much bigger. You see the possible shots which you can make troubles to the opponent.

I think, yeah, there are some similarities.”

That clearer thinking has taken him up a full 20 spots in the rankings since last February and helped him make the Miami Open semifinals and Mutua Madrid Open quarterfinals in addition to his back-to-back major semifinals at the US Open and Australian Open.

“Sometimes you're confident, sometimes you believe in yourself, and you know how to do it, but you still want to see the result to approve, you know, that you can make it,” he said, crediting his run to the 2022 US Open semifinals with removing that need for validation.

“Now this self-belief and confidence, it just stays there no matter, not matter depending on the results.”

But where a chess match is winner-take-all, the 27-year-old can’t be content with the four wins he has already amassed on the terre battue: to win a longed-for maiden major title, he’ll need to checkmate one of tennis’ Grandmasters in Novak Djokovic in the quarterfinals.

“I'm not going to tell you my chess moves, no? Because you're going to tell him straightaway,” he said, joking with a Serbian journalist.

Though Khachanov shocked Djokovic to win the biggest title of his career at the 2018 Rolex Paris Masters, he has managed just one set in their last seven matches—four of which happened last year.

“Against him, you need to play really good chess to beat him. But definitely I will prepare tomorrow. You know, it's one day between, like always, to analyze with your team what you can do better. We will watch some points, some matches from him, and then make a plan, basically.

“He's one of the toughest tasks, toughest opponents, and, you know, you cannot count him out. So, at the same time I have ultimate respect, but I'm focused, I'm pumped to do well, and let's see if I can make it or not this time.”

It’s not often that a knight takes down a king, but in the midst of a career-best stretch, Khachanov looks as ready as ever to try.