What Tommy Paul told Jessica Pegula was the reason he lost the final to Seb Korda in Delray Beach

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Tommy Paul lost to Sebastian Korda 6-4, 6-3 in the 2026 Delray Beach Open final.

In a battle of the Americans, Paul came up short, losing to Korda in straight sets.

It was still a positive week for the 28-year-old, though, as he reached his first ATP final since October 2024 (Stockholm Open).

But why did he lose the final?

During the latest episode of ‘The Player’s Box Podcast‘, Jessica Pegula revealed what Paul told her about the Delray Beach Open final.

Tommy Paul said his ‘attitude’ in the wind cost him the Delray Beach title

“I saw Tommy [Paul] today at the gym, and he said that the final, which I heard was crazy windy, insanely windy. He’s like, you either have a good attitude in the wind or a bad attitude in the wind,” said Pegula.

“He said, I didn’t quite have a great attitude in the wind.

“There’s never both players happy about the wind situation, it’s always one dealing with it fine, and one ready to lose their mind.

“So he kind of implied, a little bit, that the conditions were bothering him a little bit.

“I heard people say, on TV, as well, that it was crazy windy, which, it’s down by the beach… it gets very windy.

“But also, a good tournament for Tommy, because he hasn’t been playing a ton, now that he’s back from his injury this year, so that’s good for him.”

Having been ranked as high as eighth in 2025, Paul dropped out of the top 20 after an injury-ridden season.

He now sits 24th in the ATP rankings, over 1,500 points away from the top 10.

Tommy Paul in the ATP Rankings

He’ll be looking to make a push towards the top 10 with a deep run at Indian Wells.

Who will Tommy Paul play at Indian Wells?

Entering the first Masters 1000 event of the year with a seed next to his name, Paul received a BYE into round two.

There, he will play either Zizou Bergs or Jan-Lennard Struff.

He’ll be the big favorite against both players, but might have a tougher time of things in the third round.

Paul could play Raphael Collignon, Joao Fonseca, or Karen Khachanov.

Collignon is a dangerous player on his day, but it’s Fonseca and Khachanov that will worry Paul.

Fonseca pushed Paul close in their one previous ATP Tour meeting, at the Madrid Open a year ago.

• Tommy Paul defeated Joao Fonseca 7-6, 7-6 (2025 Madrid Open 2R)

And while Paul has a positive head-to-head record against Khachanov (3-0), the Russian has impressed so far this year and is always a dangerous opponent.

If Paul were to advance to the fourth round, he’d be faced with an even tougher challenge.

Former world number one and four-time Grand Slam champion Jannik Sinner is likely to stand between Paul and a spot in the quarterfinals.

Paul has a losing head-to-head record against Sinner and has never beaten the Italian on a hard court.

Tommy Paul and Jannik Sinner’s head-to-head record

Were he to upset the odds and beat Sinner in the fourth round of Indian Wells, Paul would earn himself 200 ranking points.

Paul won’t want to concern himself with potential fourth-round matchups just yet, though.

He’ll first prepare to take on Bergs or Struff in the second round later this week.