Brooksby Breezes Past Paire In Atlanta

Jenson Brooksby made a perfect Atlanta Open debut on Tuesday when he eliminated Frenchman Benoit Paire 6-3, 6-1 to reach the second round.

“It feels really nice to be back in the States,” Brooksby said. “Always after two, three weeks off of matches it feels good to get a win under your belt and I thought that was a really solid match to start and I’ve been training really well too, so I’m excited with the path I’m on right now.”

The American got off to a quick start to his season, reaching the final in Dallas and winning three matches each at ATP Masters 1000 events at Indian Wells and Miami. But he went 5-8 during the clay and grass seasons.

While the 21-year-old used that as a learning experience, he is happy to be back on the hard courts.

“I had a really good hard-court season last year too and we learned things through the clay and grass this year,” Brooksby said. “I’m excited to be back on hard, definitely [being] back in the States and I think I can even do much better than last year.”

In an All-American clash, fifth seed Tommy Paul eased past wild card Jack Sock 6-1, 6-1. Paul broke his countryman’s serve six times to set a second-round clash against frequent practice partner Soonwoo Kwon of South Korea.

Reigning Winston-Salem champion Ilya Ivashka also moved on with a 6-0, 3-6, 6-3 win against Frenchman Quentin Halys. The 28-year-old will play top seed Reilly Opelka for a spot in the quarter-finals.