Ben Shelton vs Karen Khachanov Tips, Prediction & Live Stream - Shelton to claim first Masters 1000 title

Shelton will be aiming to capture his maiden Masters 1000 title in his first final, while Khachanov is looking to secure his second title at this level after going all the way in Paris back in 2018. Shelton's confidence is sky-high after registering back-to-back wins over top 10 players for the first time in his career this tournament, taking out Washington champion Alex de Minaur and countryman Taylor Fritz, while Khachanov continues to impress with his recent resurgence, knocking out top seed Alexander Zverev in the semi-finals, saving a match point in the process.

Khachanov is always such a tough out when he reaches this sort of level, but this just feels like Shelton's time. The 22-year-old will always be lethal on serve, but it's been his return and rally tolerance from the baseline that has helped him make a first Masters final in Toronto. If Shelton shows the same sort of patience from the baseline and continues to fire bombs on serve, I'm backing him to edge Khachanov to claim a first Masters crown.

Shelton leads 1-0, beating Khachanov 6-3 7-5 in the third round of the Indian Wells Masters earlier this season.

It hasn't been an easy road to the final for Shelton, but he's improved with every match after a routine victory over Adrian Mannarino in his opener.

The American needed a deciding set tiebreak to pip Brandon Nakashima and Flavio Cobolli before raising his level to conquer top 10 players Alex de Minaur and Taylor Fritz in straight sets in the quarters and semis respectively.

Shelton improved to 26-1 this season after winning the first set, Shelton fired down 22 unreturned serves against Fritz and will rise above Novak Djokovic to No. 6 in the world if he lifts the title on Thursday.

Khachanov comes into this encounter with a 27-16 record for the season, regaining his best form after a tough start to the year and reaching his first final of 2025 in Toronto.

The 29-year-old really struggled when running into top 20 players this season, going on an 11-match losing streak against opponents in that bracket, but he's snapped that sequence emphatically this tournament.

Indeed, Khachanov toppled Casper Ruud in straight sets in the R16 before knocking off rising American star Alex Michelsen in straights in the quarter-finals.

Khachanov continued his great form with a 6-3, 4-6, 7-6(4) victory over top seed Alexander Zverev in the semi-finals, earning just his third top three scalp in 24 previous meetings. The Russian broke through as a 22-year-old to win his first Masters 1000 title in Paris back in 2018 with a win over Novak Djokovic and can equal his career-high ranking of No. 8 by winning his second Masters title on Thursday.