Paul routs Darderi: double 6-1 in 48 minutes

Tommy Paul beat Luciano Darderi 6-1, 6-1 in 48 minutes in the round of 16 of the Vienna ATP 500. The American, the seventh seed and world No. 14, held all seven of his service games. In the first set he hit 5 aces and won 92% of his first-serve points.

Darderi won just one game in the first set. In the second he went up 1-0, then Paul broke his serve three times and gave him nothing more. Three days earlier, in his opener, the Italian had won the derby against Matteo Arnaldi 7-5, 6-2.

Paul now leads the head-to-head 3-1. Darderi's only win remains his comeback at the Foro Italico in May, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2. In the quarterfinals the American will face the winner of Carlos Alcaraz and Nikoloz Basilashvili, as he continues his push for a place at the Nitto ATP Finals.

The loss also hurts Darderi in the rankings. He is about 100 points outside the top 20, and his next event is the Paris Masters 1000, a tournament where he has lost in the first round in both of his previous appearances.