Tommy Paul is the third semi-finalist of the Internazionali d’Italia 2024. The American wins a match full of twists against the Pole Hubert Hurkacz, winning in three sets with a score of 7-5 3-6 6-3 after two hours and forty-five minutes of play. This is the second semifinal of the season in a Masters 1000 for the American, the first of his career on clay.
A match where break points are wasted, given that eighteen were conceded by Paul and thirteen by Hurkacz. Eight aces were not enough for the Pole, while Paul scored many more winners than his opponent (twenty-eight against twenty-five).
Hurkacz immediately finds himself facing a break point at the start of the match. The Pole is saved, but the break is in the air and arrives on time in the third game. The world number nine reacts promptly and finds the counterbreak to make it 2-2. Paul gets another break point in the next game and breaks his opponent’s serve again. The American extends and finds himself serving for the set at 5-4, but Hurkacz gets the counterbreak and equalizes the score. The emotions in this first set are not over, given that a sensational and unexpected break to zero arrives from Paul. The American wins eight consecutive points and takes the first half at 7-5.
The match seems to totally go the way of the American, when he succeeds to get the break at the start of the second set. Hurkacz, however, doesn’t give up and earns the counterbreak in the fourth game. Ahead 4-3 the Pole takes advantage of a disastrous service game from Paul, who loses the game to zero. Hurkacz flies to 5-3 and closes the second half 6-3.
Hurkacz starts very strong in the third set and the opening break arrives. Paul equalizes the score in the fourth game, but in the following game the Pole takes the lead again by a break. Anything happens, because in the sixth game Paul even reaches 0-40, Hurkacz cancels everything, but on the fourth ball of the counterbreak he has to give up serve. Paul flies to 5-3, getting the break again in the eighth game, while the ninth is totally crazy. Hurkacz has six counterbreak points, but Paul cancels them and on the fourth match point he closes at 6-3punching the ticket to the semi-final.
