Tommy Paul was firing through his second-round matchup at the US Open Thursday but the American ultimately didn’t need to rely on his skill to see out the match.
Two-sets up against Australian Max Purcell, the American walked into the third round at Flushing Meadows when his opponent walked off after just one game of the third set at the Grandstand.
The No. 14 seed had clinched a tight opening set 7-5 before dominating the second 6-0 and all it took was winning the first game of the third to steal the victory.
Purcell retired from the match after losing ten consecutive games to Paul. He didn’t appear to have called a medical trainer of physio on to the court before his retirement.
Paul will face qualifier Gabriel Diallo on Saturday after the Canadian pulled off a stunning upset – 7-5, 6-7, 6-4, 6-4 – over French No. 24 seed Arthur Fils.
Tommy Paul advanced to the third round of the US Open after his opponent retired
Max Purcell retired from the match with the American leading leading 7-5 6-0 1-0
‘I was playing really well but it’s unfortunate,’ said Paul, as he soaked up the adoration of the home crowd.
‘I thought I picked up my serve there in the second set I started hitting my forehand really well.’
It was far from the way Paul wanted to advance but an early finish will provide him with some greatly needed rest after his first-round affair against Italian Lorenzo Sonego went on well past 1:00am on Tuesday.
Paul had cut short a late-night, late-match surge by Sonego to advance to Thursday’s second round against Purcell with a win in Louis Armstrong Stadium Tuesday.
He dominated early and appeared headed for a straight-sets cruise, but Sonego made the home favorite fight through four sets for a 6-4, 6-2, 5-7, 6-2 victory.
Paul leads the American hopes alongside Taylor Fritz, who he won a bronze medal with at the Paris Olympics earlier this month.
Jessica Pegula also advanced to the third round after dispatching fellow American Sofia Kenin in a tough challenge Thursday.
However, promising American hopeful Sebastian Korda crashed out 6-4 6-3 6-4 in a little over two hours against Czechia’s Tomas Machac.
