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Sixth seed Tommy Paul beat Alexandre Muller in straight sets, 6-3, 6-1, in the first round of the Erste Bank Open in Vienna last Tuesday, Oct. 24. The match lasted for a while more than an hour, as the 26-year-old American eased towards a victory.
Paul will play his second-round match on Wednesday (October 25). He was impressive in his performance on the day and virtually gave Muller no chance. He should fancy his chances of reaching at least the last four of the tournament.
On that note, let us take a look at two things that stood out in the match:
#1. Tommy Paul returned very well
Tommy Paul played really well in his return games in the match. He landed his returns deep consistently and did not provide Muller with too many short balls. He played down-the-line returns to the open court from his ad court really well to take the Frenchman by surprise often.
Tommy Paul had 11 break point opportunities in the match, of which four were converted. In comparison, Muller did not have a single break point. Paul broke Muller in the third game of the first set and then held his serve to take a 3-1 lead. He then broke the Frenchman once again in the ninth game of the set to win it and take a vice-like grip on the match.
#2. Muller committed too many errors off his forehand
Muller tried making his opponent move from side to side in the first set and thus played himself into an advantageous position, often in a rally. However, he often hit the ball wide with his subsequent shot to waste his advantage.
He also often hit his forehand into the net in the match. Tommy Paul also committed several unforced errors, but Muller could not take advantage of that by being error-prone himself.
Paul broke him twice in the second set, too, taking a 4-0 lead initially to seal the fate of the match. He then served out the match in the seventh game of the set to complete the formalities.
Paul won 77% and 67% of the points on his first and second serves, respectively, while Muller managed 49% and 50% on his, respectively. Hence, it was a lop-sided encounter mostly, with the American asserting his supremacy from the very beginning.
