Achyuth Binu Upsets No. 3 Safir Azam as Rain Sweeps Through Pan American Closed; Top Seeds Alexander and Johnson Move On

At the World Tennis J300 Pan American Closed in Spring, Texas, 17-year-old wild card Achyuth Binu upset No. 3 seed Safir Azam in a three-set match that finished just before rain began to fall across the facility. The match score was 7-5, 2-6, 6-1.

Binu, who trains at the HITT Academy near Boca Raton, Florida, said he focused on staying in long rallies and avoiding rushed points as rain began while he led 5-1 in the final set. He credited recent training gains—he has been in Florida for four years and at HITT for the past five months—and pointed to a semifinal run at a J200 in Corpus Christi the previous week as evidence of improved form.

Binu won the first set 7-5, Azam responded by taking the second 6-2, and Binu dominated the deciding set 6-1. Binu described Azam appearing to tire mentally and physically late in the match and forced an error on match point less than 30 seconds before play was suspended on other courts because of rain. Earlier in the day the heat index exceeded 100 before clouds and showers arrived.

Tournament picture: seeds and upsets

Top-seeded junior players continued to advance but faced resistance. Andy Johnson, the top seed and 2025 finalist at this event, beat William McEwan 6-2, 6-1 in a match Johnson said was tougher than the score suggested. Johnson noted he and McEwan train together in Orlando, so there was familiarity to overcome.

• Unseeded Gadin Arun beat No. 14 seed Caden Colburne 6-4, 6-1 and will meet Binu in the next round.
• Qualifier Piotr Gradzki is the only qualifier to reach the round of 16 so far, defeating No. 12 seed Felipe Mamede 6-3, 6-3.
• Sulaiman Syed upset No. 11 seed Kayden Colombo 6-3, 7-6(7).
• William McEwan, despite losing to Johnson, earlier beat No. 15 seed Antoine Clavel 7-5, 6-4.

Binu moves into the round of 16 and will meet Gadin Arun. The top seeds remain in contention but will continue to face matches where familiarity, heat and changing weather could influence outcomes. The tournament schedule has already seen at least one court suspension because of rain after matches had been decided elsewhere.