WHAT HAPPENED: Propelled by a highly partisan crowd under the lights on Court 17, Australian Open semifinalist and No. 14 seed Tommy Paul survived a major scare, coming back from two sets down to defeat Roman Safiullin, 3-6, 2-6, 6-2, 6-4, 6-3, to advance to the third round of the US Open for the second time.
Safiullin actually claimed the one match previously contested between the pair, which took place earlier this year on the clay, in Madrid. And the current world No. 60 also enjoyed his most recent success at a major, knocking out seeded players Roberto Bautista Agut and Denis Shapovalov en route to a quarterfinal showing at Wimbledon in July. But Paul came into Flushing Meadows with a great deal of momentum, enjoying a strong string of results on the summer hard courts. He upset world No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz to reach the semifinals of the ATP Masters 1000 event in Toronto, and then again pushed the reigning Wimbledon champion to three sets in their Round-of-16 match a week later at the ATP Masters 1000 event in Cincinnati.
As to be expected in a battle between two aggressive baseliners, both players were cranking their groundstrokes early and pummeling every short ball. They stayed even for most of the first seven games until Paul made some ill-timed errors serving at 3-4 to get broken. Safiullin—who claimed an astounding 94% of his first serve points—easily served out the set to love, finishing with a forehand winner.
The struggles continued for the American, as he was broken in just the third game of the second set. Frequently forced into sending balls long by the tiniest of margins, he could make very few inroads while returning. Safiullin broke Paul again at 2-4. The world No. 14 tried to mix it up by changing his return stance in the final game, but to no avail; Safiullin served it out again to take a two-set lead.
Then, Safiullin blinked. Paul finally broke in the second game of the third set as a mistimed overhead from his opponent sailed long. The momentum shift was palpable. Rushing the net and serving quadruple the aces he’d served previously, Paul took command; he went up a double break and then had an opportunity to serve it out at 5-1. Unlike Safiullin, however, the American was swiftly broken.
The very next game had just about everything: multiple deuces, nervy errors in important moments and a return winner from around the net post. In the end, Paul broke again, claiming the set on his second opportunity.
As the sun set over New York, both players began to peak at the same time. Paul—perhaps encouraged by cheers of “Let’s go, Tommy!” from the stands—shifted into a different shotmaking gear, lifting his first-serve percentage and winning one rally with multiple volleys at the net. Safiullin remained solid on his own service games, too—until the 10th game, when Paul’s relentless defense made him think too much about his shots. Paul received one break-point opportunity—and that’s all he needed when his opponent sent a ball sailing wide.
An inverse of the first two sets, the American took control in the fifth. Adjusting to the power coming off his opponent’s racquet, Paul reigned in his shots. Meanwhile, Safiullin began to venture to the net more, which didn’t help his cause. Paul broke Safiullin in the second game, then saved two break points while serving for the match to complete the comeback.
WHAT IT MEANS: Paul now matches his previous best appearance at Flushing Meadows, which he recorded in 2022. He next faces Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich Fokina. The American leads their head-to-head 2-0, with both matches played on hard courts.
MATCH POINT: This is Paul’s first victory from two sets down. He was previously 0-9.
