After Tommy Paul followed his upset of defending Rome champion Daniil Medvedev with a three-set quarterfinal win against Hubert Hurkacz on Thursday, actor Matthew McConaughey got behind the American with a social media shoutout on X.
"Looks like the early year Tommy Paul train is back on track after it was interrupted by the ankle. Looking good TP. Roll," wrote the A-lister, who watched the 2023 US Open men's singles final from Novak Djokovic's player box and celebrated with the Serbian after his victory.
Paul was chugging along at the start of this season, with standout results including a Dallas title run and an Indian Wells semifinal showing. But he was forced to retire in Miami after turning his ankle in his opening match against countryman Martin Damm. After returning to action with a win last month in Madrid, Paul has now reached his second ATP Masters 1000 semifinal of the season in Rome.
The American picked up his 150th career singles win on Thursday by battling back from 0-2 in the third set to record a 7-5, 3-6, 6-3 result against the seventh-seeded Hurkacz. The victory sent him through to his third career Masters 1000 semifinal (Toronto 2023, Indian Wells 20024) and his second career clay semi on the ATP Tour (Parma 2021).
With wins against Medvedev and Hurkacz in consecutive rounds, Paul has recorded two Top 10 victories at the same tournament for the first time. He could leave Rome as the new American No. 1 by claiming the title, with a Friday semifinal to come against Nicolas Jarry before a potential final against either Alexander Zverev or Alejandro Tabilo on Sunday.
No doubt Paul will be feeling the love from McConaughey as he bids for the third and biggest title of his career on the Italian clay.
Last month, the actor posted a snap of himself on the tennis court on Instagram, sporting a sweat-drenched shirt and bandana. The fashion-forward post drew replies from a host of tennis stars, including Paul and Djokovic.
"The collared sleeveless is electric," said Paul, while Djokovic asked: "Got any tips?"
Paul has made a fashion statement of his own in Rome with an all-neon green kit. Now he will bid to make another statement on the court by becoming the first American champion at the event since Andre Agassi in 2002. Since then, the best American men's result has been a semifinal showing, with Agassi (2008), Andy Roddick (2002, 2008), John Isner (2017) and Reilly Opelka (2021) all reaching the last four.
Paul also made U.S. history by reaching the quarterfinals along with Taylor Fritz. Their combined feat marked the first time multiple American men reached that stage in Rome since Andy Roddick and James Blake in 2008.
