Top seed Tommy Paul edged past Manuel Guinard 6-4 3-6 6-3 in the second round at the Adelaide International. Paul converted both break points he earned.
Paul earned the first break in the first game to seal the opening set 6-4. Guinard converted his third break point in the second game to win the second set 6-3.
Paul broke serve in the second game and held serve to open up a 3-0 lead. The world number 12 went down 15-40 down when he was serving at 5-3 but he saved two break points before reeling off four consecutive points to close out the third set 6-3 after 1 hour and 52 minutes.
“We had never played before. I had seen Guinard in a couple of tournaments, and I knew that he could bring the level. I got the break early in the first set and kind of rolled them. Then in the second set he picked up his level a tonne, and it was a challenging match. The first match of the year is always tough, and it doesn’t help when he is roping balls all over the court. The first match is always such an important one to feel where your level is. I felt like with the pressure points pretty well and I am looking forward to the next match”, said Paul. Pau set up a quarter final match against lucky loser Rinky Hijikata, who edged past seventh seed Brandon Nakashima 6-2 3-6 7-5 (7-5).
