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World no. 9 Tommy Paul is through to his second semi-final of the season in Dallas. The Australian Open quarter-finalist faced fellow American Reilly Opelka in the quarter-final and scored a 7-6, 6-2 win in an hour and a half.
Opelka fought well in the opening set. He denied break points in two games before falling in the tie break. Tommy gained a boost and served well in the second set, keeping the pressure on the other side. The 3rd seed grabbed two breaks and sealed the deal in style.
They fired 62 service winners in 143 points. Paul had the upper hand from the baseline after landing 15 winners and 20 unforced errors. Opelka sprayed too many mistakes, collecting 24 from his forehand and losing ground in the second set.
The better-ranked player lost 16 points in ten service games, facing no break points and challenging his rival to follow that pace. Tommy turned 38% of the return points into two breaks from seven opportunities.
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Reilly faced issues in the first game of the encounter. The giant server wasted game points and faced a break point after netting a backhand. The former world no. 17 denied it with a service winner and held to avoid an early setback.
Opelka squandered two game points at 2-2 and played against two break points. He saved them with powerful serves and remained on the positive side. They served well in the upcoming games, and Tommyserved to extend the set at 5-6.
Reilly fired a forehand crosscourt winner and reached a deuce. However, Paul held and introduced a tie break. The better-ranked player grabbed a mini-break in the fifth point and landed two service winners for a 5-2 advantage.
The 3rd seed wrapped up the set with an unreturned serve at 6-3, sealing the first part of the duel in 56 minutes and gaining a boost. Tommy served well in the second set and took charge on the return. He cracked a backhand crosscourt winner in the fourth game for a break and a 3-1 lead.
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World no. 9 held after a deuce in the seventh game for 5-2 and generated three match points on the return in the next one. Heconverted the last with a forehand winner at the net, moving over the top and remaining on the title course.
