Paul misses Florida fishing season but reels in a lunker in Paris

PARIS - Tommy Pauls rods may be gathering dust back home in Florida with the prime fishing season under way but the 12th-seed reeled in one of his biggest catches when he blasted past Australias Alexei Popyrin in the French Open fourth round on Sunday.

Paul, an enthusiastic amateur fisherman, admitted the rod and reel sport was sometimes on his mind even during baseline rallies on the worlds biggest tennis stages.

Right now its like the prime time season in South Florida for fishing, so Im seeing a lot of great fish get caught while Im away, and its kind of breaking my heart, Paul told a press conference. At least some people are catching them, right?

He did bag a whopper himself on Sunday though with his 6-3 6-3 6-3 win over Popyrin, becoming the first American male player to reach the last eight in Paris in 22 years.

Paul also became the only active American player to reach the last eight on all three surfaces after his 2023 Australian Open semi-final and 2024 Wimbledon quarter-final runs.

For me its just like a getaway. When Im fishing, Im not thinking about tennis. Sometimes when Im playing tennis, Im thinking about fishing, he said.

When Im out there (fishing),its like a complete separation from my job, from tennis. I think thats really healthy.

Paul can land another trophy catch in the last eight where he will face either defending champion Carlos Alcaraz or fellow American and world number 13 Ben Shelton. REUTERS

Join STs Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.