Trio of Americans push forward at French Open

No. 12 seed Tommy Paul, No. 13 seed Ben Shelton and No. 15 seed Frances Tiafoe won Friday to ensure at least three Americans will reach the French Open's Round of 16 at Roland Garros in Paris.

Paul won a five-setter for the second straight round, defeating Russian No. 24 seed Karen Khachanov 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (7), 3-6, 6-3 in four hours and seven minutes. In the previous round, Paul rallied past Hungary's Marton Fucsovics 4-6, 2-6, 6-3, 7-5, 6-4.

Paul's biggest opponent has been the lower abdominal injury he has been fighting through for most of the tournament. But he joked to reporters after beating Khachanov that he felt "like a million bucks."

"I love this stuff, it's so much fun playing out here, honestly," Paul said. "Not all matches are four hours long, but that was an awesome battle on both ends of the court. We both played well and that's what it's all about."

Facing a tough third-round opponent in Khachanov, Paul won 69 of 100 first-service points, saved 9 of 15 break points and converted 6 of 12 opportunities to break the Russian's serve.

Paul's next match will be against No. 25 seed Alexei Popyrin of Australia, who eliminated Portugal's Nuno Borges 6-4, 7-6 (11), 7-6 (5).

Tiafoe, meanwhile, won an all-American matchup against No. 23 seed Sebastian Korda 7-6 (6), 6-3, 6-4.

"I think we are all pushing each other and working hard," Tiafoe said of the current crop of American male tennis stars. "There's a window in the game, a lot of guys see a lot of opportunity and it helps when you see peers do well. It's becoming a normality that we are going deep in Slams and having a look in, it's not a surprise anymore."

Though Tiafoe reached the U.S. Open semifinals in 2022 and 2024, he has enjoyed less success at the other Grand Slams and this marks his first time reaching the fourth round at Roland Garros. Next up for Tiafoe is Germany's Daniel Altmaier, a 4-6, 6-3, 6-3, 6-2 winner over Serbian Hamad Medjedovic.

Shelton turned back Italian qualifier Matteo Gigante 6-3, 6-3, 6-4 -- hitting 10 aces and winning 37 of 47 first-service points (78.7 percent) along the way.

Of the three Americans clear to the round of 16, Shelton has the toughest task ahead: a fourth-round date with No. 2 seed Carlos Alcaraz.

The Spaniard stumbled just a bit in the third set before finishing off Damir Dzumhur of Bosnia and Herzegovina 6-1, 6-3, 4-6, 6-4.

No. 8 seed Lorenzo Musetti of Italy dropped a set before getting past Argentina's Mariano Navone 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-2. No. 10 seed Holger Rune of Denmark pushed the envelope even further, squeaking past Frenchman Quentin Halys 4-6, 6-2, 5-7, 7-5, 6-2.

--Field Level Media