Tommy Paul has made history, becoming the first American men’s tennis player to advance to the French Open quarterfinals in 22 years with a straight-set victory over 25th-seeded Alexei Popyrin, 6-3, 6-3, 6-3 in Sunday’s fourth-round matchup. The feat makes Paul the first U.S. male player to reach this stage at the French Open since Andre Agassi did so in 2003.

Before his straight-sets win over Popyrin, the 12th-seeded Paul endured grueling five-set matches against Karen Khachanov and Marton Fucsovics in earlier rounds.   At 28, Paul has reached a new milestone in his career. Prior to this year, he had never made it past the third round at the French Open. Now, he’s among the tournament’s final eight contenders. According to the Associated Press, Paul also holds the distinction of being the only current American player to reach the quarterfinals on three different Grand Slam surfaces.

Back in 2003, Agassi’s own run ended in the quarterfinals with a loss to Argentina’s Guillermo Coria. That year’s championship ultimately went to Spain’s Juan Carlos Ferrero.

Paul’s next opponent will be determined by the outcome of the quarterfinal match between Ben Shelton and Carlos Alcaraz, which is scheduled for Tuesday at Roland-Garros.

Editorial credit: Victor Velter / Shutterstock.com