Playing in his second Delray Beach Open final, Sebastian Korda won his third ATP title with a 6-4, 6-3 victory over Tommy Paul on Sunday afternoon. Korda, the runner-up in 2021, dug out of a 0-40 hole while serving for the championship at 5-3 in the second set to triumph in one hour and 22 minutes.
“(It means) a lot,” the 50th-ranked American assured. “I’ve been through some stuff the past couple of months (and) years. I’ve lost a lot of finals, and now to get one here in Delray…this is where I made my first ATP final, so it’s like a full-circle day. I’m just happy.”
It was a fully deserved title, too. Korda was the best player all week long while ousting three of the top five seeds — Paul (No. 3), Casper Ruud (No. 2 in the quarterfinals), and Flavio Cobolli (No. 3 in the semis). He also knocked off compatriots Mackenzie McDonald and Alex Michelsen in rounds one and two, respectively.
In the final, Korda simply handled the conditions better than Paul. In extreme wind, the 25-year-old managed to serve at 67 percent and struck nine aces to just two double-faults. He was broken only once and answered that lone break in the first game of the second set with an immediate break-back.
It looked like Paul would stay alive with his second break of the day in the final game, but Korda impressively saved a total of four break points to power his way across the finish line.
“It’s as satisfying as it can get, winning a tournament (after serving) from 0-40 down,” Korda said during his post-match interview. “I’ve put in a lot of hard work, especially mentally, the last couple of weeks — just trusting the process, going after my shots, and not really getting into any negativity.”