Tommy Paul 'mad and sad' after losing Hottie bracket final to Matteo Berrettini, teases John Isner

Tommy Paul was recently spotted bitter while Matteo Berrettini was handed the trophy for his win on the “Hottie Bracket” challenge, which was conducted online. John Isner, a part of the show, confirmed Paul's disappointment portrayed in a recent Instagram post.

The competition was structured as a round-robin draw. There were 16 participants, including some of the best-looking players on the ATP circuit. People voted for the most attractive player in each round, and finally, the winner was crowned.

Paul reached the finals after defeating Thanasi Kokkinakis, Lorenzo Musseti, and Casper Ruud in the previous rounds. On the other hand, the Italian defeated Mikhail Kukushkin, Ben Shelton, and Grigor Dimitrov en route to the finals. In the final round, the American lost to Berrettini, which he was not very happy about.

The “Hottie Bracket” challenge is conducted by the “nothing major show.” They recently handed the trophy to Berrettini for his win and Tommy Paul was also there.

In the pictures posted on Instagram, expressions posed by Paul seemed morose. On which a fan commented with confusion:

“Is Tommy mad or sad?”

To which John Isner replied, who is a part of the show, and removed all the doubts:

“@mrnovillo both”

Comments on the post shared on Instagram by the Nothing Major show - Source: Instagram/@nothingmajorshow

The winner was given the trophy and an Italian restaurant gift card, Olive Garden. The bragging rights of calling yourself the most good-looking man on the tour came as a bonus with the championship win.

Both players were knocked out at Indian Wells. In the fourth round, Tommy Paul lost to 5th seed Daniil Medvedev in straight sets, 4-6, 0-6. Meanwhile, the Italian lost to Stefanos Tsitsipas in the third round, 3-6, 3-6. Both will now look forward to the other side of the Sunshine Double, the Miami Open, which begins on March 19.

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Tommy Paul even expressed his willingness to become Matteo Berrettini

Tommy Paul at the BNP Paribas Open press conference - Source: Getty

After losing to Matteo Berrettini, Tommy Paul expressed his feelings on Tennis Channel about how he felt after the loss.

“Toughest final of my career, for sure. Tough day overall, really tough week but I am happy for him, you know, he deserves it. I go to sleep every night wanting to be Matteo [laughing]," he said.

In a fun banter, Paul opened up about his desire to be as good-looking as Matteo and acknowledged that it was the toughest final of his career.

Paul's comments sparked a flurry of reactions, with fans praising the the fun between the two players on social media. Some even asked for a rematch in next year’s Hottie Bracket, while others joked about Paul launching his modeling career in the offseason.

For now, Paul will have to settle with being one of the talented players on tour and a runner-up to Matteo until the next competition.