Nice surprises

Not the two players we were expecting in the quarterfinal in this part of the draw, but I’m fine with that!

Paul had been stuck for a long time against Zverev and wasn’t playing his best tennis, then he saved a match point and later took advantage of a break in the third set to steal the match; even he doesn’t really know how he managed to do it. I didn’t really like the level of play but his attitude was cool, and he’s going to play with more and more confidence, which is a good sign for him.

Same for Cobolli, who said he needs to remind himself how strong he is sometimes. The Italian was going through a mini confidence crisis after two crappy tournaments and a pretty average level of play in the first two rounds. Just like Paul, he struggled for a long time against Jodar, spending the whole match just hanging in there. But after a set and a half, the Spaniard’s intensity dropped and Cobolli pushed right where it hurt. Overall I still think his match was very good, and he too is in a kind of upward trend.

This is only the second meeting between Paul and Cobolli after a rollercoaster match right here last year. Paul had 3 match points but ended up losing. It was an open match anyway: they’re not huge servers and they move really well on the return to keep rallies going. I’d say they’re capable of doing the same things and also having the same problems. I trust Paul just a touch more in how he handles things mentally and physically, but it’s marginal.