Riske tasted victory in Linz, while Paul celebrated his first tour-level title in Stockholm.

He’s the third Canadian man to reach the Top 10 in ATP rankings history, after Milos Raonic and Denis Shapovalov.

"It took my best tennis to beat Denis," the American said Saturday. "It's the most fun I've had playing a tennis tournament."

"It's never easy playing against a really close friend," the fifth seed said Thursday.

“It’s like going from 100 m.p.h. to zero with those three out,” says Hubert Hurkacz’s coach Craig Boynton, about the absence of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic.

Though only Fritz remains in contention in Indian Wells, Paul will surely feel good about what he accomplished in the desert.

“I knew what I was in for,” said the 26-year-old Brit, who beat Tommy Paul in three sets to reach his first ATP Masters 1000 quarterfinal. “I stayed pretty composed in the big moments.”

The American remained calm and collected as he used his incredible speed to befuddle the world No. 5.

Intense winds swept over the desert on Monday, which led to pouring rain in the evening hours at the BNP Paribas Open.

Despite not having won a hard-court match this season, the Chilean is just a two-game underdog against an improving Paul.