Roma. The American Tommy Paul (sixteenth) reached the semifinals of the Rome Masters 1000 for the primary time by beating the Polish Hubert Hurkacz (ninth) 7-5, 3-6 and 6-3 this Thursday.
Paul had stunned the defending champion, the Russian Daniil Medvedev (4th), within the earlier spherical.
With the victory in opposition to Hurkacz he has a second victory in opposition to a Prime-10 participant for the primary time in his profession, counting on his serve.
“The third set was a bit like a curler coaster, with ups and downs for every of the 2,” Paul mentioned in his press convention after the victory within the quarterfinals.
Earlier than arriving in Rome, Paul (26 years outdated) had solely performed two matches on clay in Madrid, a match that marked his return to the circuit after a hip damage that had pressured him to desert his entry into the fray within the Miami Masters 1000.
“My hip damage in Miami got here at a time once I was taking part in, for sure, my finest tennis,” he recalled. “However now I am beginning to really feel increasingly more comfy on clay. I am having fun with this season extra, I am not complaining in regards to the bounces, I am extra relaxed with this floor. You want that for issues to work on clay,” he mentioned.
Hurkacz, who decisively eradicated Rafael Nadal within the second spherical, didn’t reply to his fame as an awesome server, dropping his serve seven occasions.
Paul, who this 12 months received the Dallas Match, will search for his ticket on Friday to a fourth ATP closing in his profession, the primary on clay, in opposition to the winner of the duel between the Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas (eighth) and the Chilean Nicolas Jarry ( 24º).
Within the different semifinal, the massive shock of the match will face one another, the Chilean Alejandro Tabilo (thirty second), who defeated Novak Djokovic within the third spherical, and the German Alexander Zverev (fifth).
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– 2024-05-23 17:07:18
