ATP 250 DELRAY BEACH. by Emiliano Naftali
Dallas champion Tommy Paul continued his victorious streak on American turf, clinching a remarkable comeback victory in three sets on Thursday at the Delray Beach Open. Facing off against rising star Alex Michelsen in their inaugural encounter on the Lexus ATP Head2Head circuit, Paul secured a hard-fought 5-7, 6-4, 7-6(4) triumph in this all-American clash.
In a gripping three-hour battle marked by dramatic momentum swings, Paul progressed to his 30th quarter-final at the tour level, with 24 of them achieved on hard courts.
“That was a crazy one, a little longer than I would have liked for sure,” the third seed said post-match. “He’s a great player, he makes everything super tricky. It’s hard to break his serve, hard to beat him backhand to backhand. He’s definitely improving every week and he’ll be on Tour for a long time for sure.”
The 26-year-old, a standout from the recent season of Break Point, is set to continue his impressive five-match winning streak as he takes on Jordan Thompson in the quarter-finals.
Thompson, hailing from Australia and coming off a notable victory against Rafael Nadal in Brisbane just last month, secured his 20th tour-level quarter-final with a dominant 6-2, 6-2 triumph over American qualifier Nicolas Moreno De Alboran. The 29-year-old, currently at a career-high Pepperstone ATP Ranking of No. 42, has been in sublime form in Delray Beach, not dropping a single set. His campaign at the ATP 250 event commenced with a statement win over seventh seed Daniel Evans, triumphing 7-5, 6-0 in the opening round.
Frances Tiafoe took center stage during the evening session at Delray Beach and thrilled the home crowd with a spirited 7-6(5), 7-6(4) victory against Radu Albot. The second-seeded Tiafoe showcased his resilience, rallying to claim the first set after initially faltering to serve it out at 5-3. He then mounted a remarkable comeback from 2-5 down in the second set, staving off a set point at 5-6 before forcing another tie-break, much to the delight of the enthusiastic spectators.