Delray Beach
Paul ousts top seed Fritz in Delray Beach, to face ‘undoubtedly one of best players in the world’
Tien rallies against Tiafoe, Korda upsets Ruud
February 21, 2026
Andrew Patron/BigShots Photo
Tommy Paul defeats Taylor Fritz in straight sets Friday evening in Delray Beach.
By ATP Staff
Two years ago, Taylor Fritz cruised past close friend Tommy Paul in the Delray Beach Open final. Paul served his fellow American revenge Friday evening on the same court.
The fifth-seeded Paul upset Fritz 6-4, 6-3 in just 76 minutes to dash the top seed’s hopes of claiming his third title at the ATP 250 event.
“The last time we played was actually on this court, so it’s cool to play 15 minutes from home against one of my closest friends, longtime friends,” Paul said in his on-court interview. “I heard a lot of American tennis chants today and I promise we love that stuff and we’re trying really hard for you guys.”
Paul has known Fritz since they were juniors, won a bronze medal with his countryman at the 2024 Paris Olympics in men’s doubles and now is level with him in their Lexus ATP Head2Head series at 3-3 thanks to a clean performance in Florida.
“In terms of the match, I thought I moved really well. I thought I served really well on the tight points,” Paul said. “Usually if you hold serve, you’ll be in the match and I found the way on some big break points and I was really happy with how I played today.”
The 28-year-old will next play one of the fastest-rising stars on the ATP Tour, reigning Next Gen ATP Finals champion Learner Tien, who rallied from a break down in the deciding set to eliminate 2018 Delray Beach champion Frances Tiafoe 7-6(5), 3-6, 7-5.
“He’s obviously really turned it on in the past year or so. He’s undoubtedly one of the best players in the world now,” Paul said. “He’s an exciting player to watch. I haven’t played him yet, so we’ll see how he is to play, I’m sure it’s not going to be easy. But I’m going to do everything I can to get ready for that match.”
Sebastian Korda held his nerve on Saturday at the Delray Beach Open, delivering a composed performance to upset second seed Casper Ruud 4-6, 6-2, 6-2.
With his two-hour, six-minute win over the Norwegian, the American advanced to his first semi-final at the tournament since 2021.
“I tried battling as much as I could,” Korda said. “Luckily, I found some form and started playing really well after that [first set].”
After an error-strewn opening set in which he hit 17 unforced errors, Korda took control of the match in the second set. He swung the momentum with a gutsy break at 3-2, fighting back from 40/0 on Ruud’s serve. He claimed another break in the eighth game, clinching the set emphatically with a forehand return winner. In the third set, he secured an early break with a stunning volley and finished having won 24 of 29 points at the net. The 25-year-old fired 10 aces and won 72 per cent (34/47) of his first-serve points according to ATP Infosys Stats.
The American will face third seed Flavio Cobolli for a place in the final. Cobolli defeated Coleman Wong 7-5, 6-7(7), 6-2 in two hours and 14 minutes to deny the 21-year-old his first tour-level semi-final.