Paul stops Wawrinka’s winning ways in Sweden

STOCKHOLM, Sweden (AFP) — Tommy Paul ended Stan Wawrinka’s semi-final run in the Stockholm ATP tournament with a 6-3, 6-2 win on Saturday and will meet Grigor Dimitrov in the final.

Wawrinka, the 39-year-old three-time Grand Slam champion who has now slipped to 217th in the world, had beaten Andrey Rublev in the quarter-finals on Friday, his first win against a top-10 opponent for more than a year.

But he found the going tough against 27-year-old American Paul, the world number 13.

With Paul 4-2 ahead in the first set, Wawrinka had two chances to break but spurned both.

The American, who won the Stockholm title in 2021, roared through the second set to move into Sunday’s final against Bulgarian world No. 10 Dimitrov, who defeated Dutchman Tallon Griekspoor 2-6, 7-5, 6-4 in the other semi-final.