Paul Pulls Off Trickery To Reach Savannah QFs

Looking to hold serve in the opening exchanges against countryman Mitchell Krueger, Tommy Paul crafted a memorable ATP Challenger Tour Hot Shot (video below).

“Yeah it was good,” reflected Paul. “When I first hit the tweener it had already been a pretty long point. When I ran back I was thinking ‘Am I actually going to hit a tweener here? I probably shouldn’t.’ I connected but I thought that point was over. I kind of got lucky, after his volley came right back at me, and I managed to direct that shot down the line.”

Playing as a wild card at the $75,000 Challenger in Savannah, Paul navigated past eighth seed Krueger 3-6, 7-6(6), 6-0 to earn a first ATP Challenger Tour quarter-final of the season. “I was pretty excited, we had a really good match, a lot of good points, but I just have to focus on my next match now,” added Paul. “I was pretty happy I got given the wild card to play here. I’m trying to make the best of the chance.”

The American is No. 393 in the Emirates ATP Rankings and is determined to climb back into the Top 200. “I’m always expecting more from myself. This year I don’t think I’ve started that well, but this week will definitely help,” said the 19 year old, who was at a career-high World No. 191 in April 2016. “I have to take it one match at a time. Every single match and tournament I sign up for, I want to win it.”