Friendly Fire: Paul Advances To Newport QFs With Quinn Win

Top seed Tommy Paul opened his campaign at the Infosys Hall of Fame Open on Wednesday with a 6-4, 6-2 win against Ethan Quinn, claiming victory in a matchup of Americans coached by Brad Stine.

Quinn, the reigning NCAA singles champion, picked up a win in his ATP Tour debut this week but was turned back by Paul on centre court at the Newport ATP 250.

"I think the overall level of the match was really good," Paul said after making his tournament debut. "I knew Ethan's game a little bit. My coach also works with him, so I've watched a few of his matches. I watched him play at NCAAs.

"I knew he had a big serve, big forehand, so I kind of knew what to be ready for, and I knew that he would be hyped up for the match." 

A former Georgia Bulldog, Quinn began his professional career last week on the ATP Challenger Tour. He has worked with Stine since he was six or seven years old, and the coach often uses Paul as an aspirational example in his work with Quinn.

On Wednesday, Paul gave Quinn a lesson himself on the Rhode Island grass courts. The World No. 14 converted on five of 11 break points to advance to the quarter-finals. He navigated a topsy-turvy start to the second set that featured five consecutive breaks, ultimately winning the final four games of the match.

With the win, Paul improved to 13-3 against fellow Americans since the start of 2022 (8-1 in 2023). He also improved to 19-0 in tour-level matches against players ranked outside of Top 150.

He will next face John Isner, who scored up a 6-3, 6-4 upset against eighth seed Corentin Moutet later in the day.

Kevin Anderson was also a Wednesday winner in Newport, continuing his successful comeback to ATP Tour action. The South African beat Gijs Brouwer 6-3, 7-6(6) to advance to the quarter-finals with his second straight-sets win of the tournament.

Next up for Anderson is third seed Ugo Humbert, who beat American Steve Johnson 6-4, 6-4.

Second seed Adrian Mannarino made a winning start in Newport with a 6-3, 6-4 result against Rinky Hijikata. He will take on another Aussie in the quarters: Jordan Thompson, who earned a 6-2, 6-2 victory against Liam Broady on Wednesday.