PAES-SETTER...Leander Paes goes for a backhand return during his match against the top-seed Alex Radulescu in the Hall of Fame tennis quarter-finals at Newport, Paes won 6-3, 7-6.

NEWPORT, JULY 11: Seventh seed Leander Paes of India upset top seed Alex Radulescu of Germany 6-3, 7-6 here yesterday to advance into the semi-finals of the $ 255,000 Hall of Fame Tennis Championships.

The 24-year-old Paes, surprise bronze medal winner at the Atlanta Olympics, ended the quarter-final match in straight sets by storming to a 7-1 win in the tie-break.

Radulescu, ranked 83rd in the world, reached the third round at Wimbledon and the final of April's Gold Flake Open in India, his first career final as a professional.

In the other quarterfinal match yesterday, fifth seed Sargis Sargsian of Armenia beat fourth-seeded Australian Sandon Stolle 6-3, 7-5.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.