"I would say it was more of a vacation than a training block" - Tommy Paul recalls trip to Mallorca ahead of grass swing

From the women to the men, there is more action at the Queen's Club Championships with a vast variety of top tennis talents making their way to London to compete for the ATP 500 title. Tommy Paul knows the feeling of winning here all too well and would very much like to taste more glory. He began his campaign by defeating fellow American Zachary Svajda 7-5, 6-3.

The lucky loser posed a threat for the 2024 Queen's champion. While being fortunate to make it into the tournament, he was coming off the back of an unlikely run to the last-16 of Roland Garros where he lost to finalist Flavio Cobolli.

The match began fairly routinely with 10 holds of serve. That was made 11 after Svajda failed to take a break point at a crucial time in the match. It would also become pivotal. Paul managed to create a couple of set points against the serve, converting the second one and storming out ahead.

He made it five games on the spin in a very dominant period that would sway the match in his favour. He sailed into a 3-0 lead to commence the second set before surviving four break points in his final two games on serve before converting his first match point. Overcoming a slight scare at the end, he was able to blast through into the next round. He sets up a last-16 tie with Botic Van de Zandschulp.

It was Paul's first grass match of the year. It can be tricky to make the transition from clay to grass with them being completely different. Paul decided not to compete in the opening tournaments in either Stuttgart or S-Hertogenbosch as he had his eyes firmly on a title charge at Queen's.

Overall, he was fairly satisfied with his performance, pointing out one key component to the Tennis Channel that aided his win. "I think today it was my serve. I thought I served great," he said. "As the match went on, I started hitting my forehand a lot better and challenging him a little bit with the backhand cross-court. But overall, I'm happy with my first performance on grass."

It is a venue which bestows great memories for the American. "I'm not sure I'd say it feels like home, but it feels more like home than a lot of these tournaments on the road. It's obviously an unbelievable venue and I've got great memories here, so it's amazing to be back."

Paul is considered one of the most athletic players on the ATP Tour. His physical style of play sees him dart around the court while utilising the net approach on a number of occasions. This can sometimes not be the best tactic on grass compared to a surface like clay, but there are ways of finding a route around it.

"On clay, it actually gives you a little bit more time to get in. You can hit a kick serve and come in, for example. I wouldn't really do that on grass," he explained. "But there are different ways — you can change direction down the line and come in, slice, serve-and-volley. Today, in my first match, it felt a little weird trying to get to the net. It felt a little forced. As the matches go on, I'm sure that'll be something I'm looking to do a little bit more."

Grass is predominantly played in Europe, specifically in England, Germany and the Netherlands. The exception is the Mallorca Championships. It is held a week prior to Wimbledon on the Spanish islands and is good preparation for the third Grand Slam of the year.

Paul is not competing in this year's editions but did decide to travel there for some preparation ahead of Queen's. With his girlfriend, Paige Lorenze, and coach, Franco Herrero, they made a bit of a holiday out of it while looking to get some preparation on court for the upcoming period of the season.

This was done instead of going back to the United States. The 29-year-old believed it was a good decision. "It was awesome," he recalled. "We decided we weren't going to go back to the States. Instead, we'd go to Mallorca, try to make a vacation out of it and, at the same time, do some training to get ready for the grass-court season. I brought Franco along too. We got some good work in, but I would say it was more of a vacation than a training block, for sure."

Thanks to injury, the second half of Paul's 2025 season was not played out. He had reached a career high of world number eight following a brace of Grand Slam quarter-finals and consistent runs, including a semi-final in Rome.

Those points have been somewhat defended, but he has still fallen to 28th in the world due to not competing this part of the season. It is now his chance to get back those points with no pressure in defending anything. Queen's is the priority for now before he makes the trip to Wimbledon, hoping to replicate or even better the quarter-final in 2024.