THE CHAMPIONSHIPS

July 3, 2026

Tommy Paul

Press Conference

H. HURKACZ/T. Paul

4-6, 7-6, 7-5, 6-2

THE MODERATOR: Tommy, I appreciate not the result that you wanted today, but if you could just talk us through the match this afternoon, please.

TOMMY PAUL: Yeah, I mean, I thought Hubi played pretty well. He served very well. I think after the first set, he really picked up his level. I thought he started hitting his forehand well, changing direction really well. I mean, he obviously played a lot better than I did today.

THE MODERATOR: Questions.

Q. I know you just spoke about Hubi's level, but if you could reflect back on your own level, what do you think you could have done better? Also, how do you feel about your grass season overall?

TOMMY PAUL: I think I could have served a lot better. I'm not sure what my first-serve percentage was, but it felt like I hit a second serve every single point. Then I feel like I started hitting the ball a lot shorter in the court. Once it got to the groundstrokes, I feel like I was on defense a lot more than I should have been.

Then in terms of my grass court season, definitely not too pumped about it. I played pretty well in Queen's. And then here, I don't know, I wanted to do better obviously, to answer your question.

Q. I just wanted to ask you about the end of the match, the last few games. How were you feeling emotionally in that moment, because you looked quite dejected out there?

TOMMY PAUL: How was I feeling emotionally? I mean, I was pretty pissed. I was pissed, because I felt like my legs were very, very tired. You know, you're playing Wimbledon. You want to be prepared. I mean, I feel like it's pretty unacceptable for your legs to fail you, I mean, especially this early in a Grand Slam. So I was very upset about that.

I mean, that's what was going through my mind, I guess.

Q. Just a question about interacting with crowds. Some players are more demonstrative and try to get the crowd into it and gesture. Is that something that you ever think about strategically, and play off your opponent, if they're doing it, or if it ever bothers you if an opponent does that?

TOMMY PAUL: No. I mean, I think the crowd is free game for anybody. Some people like using the crowd; some people like staying in their own space.

Yeah, I mean, I think it's free game.

Q. You mentioned your legs. Would you say that's probably the reason why you lost today or...

TOMMY PAUL: No. I mean, I'm not trying to make excuses or anything. I think Hubi...

Q. What do you think you need to improve on?

TOMMY PAUL: I mean, yeah, today Hubi, he won the second and third set, I mean, straight up. Then, yeah, the fourth, my legs let me down a little bit. I don't think that's really ever been a problem of mine.

It's honestly more frustrating, because, I mean, we thought obviously we came into the tournament feeling pretty prepared for the tournament. And then Round 3, my legs were bothering me. That shouldn't happen, and it won't happen.

Q. Just a word on Hubi's serve today. Obviously it's been a while since we have seen him playing at the top level at a Grand Slam again, and we have seen it against you today. How difficult was it to deal with his serve? And with a serve like that, how far do you think he can go deeper into this tournament?

TOMMY PAUL: Yeah, he served very well. I think I only broke him that one time at, like, 2-1 in the first set or whatever. I mean, we played for three hours without breaking his serve, and I like to think I'm a pretty good returner. He's obviously serving pretty well.

Yeah, I mean, I didn't look past him when I was looking at the draw. So I have no idea who he'd play next. I have no idea how far he's going to go. He's playing great tennis.

I'm happy for him. I like Hubi a lot. I hope he does well.

Q. What was going on with your legs? You said you just felt tired?

TOMMY PAUL: Yeah. I mean, they started cramping up.