Last Updated on January 21, 2019
Greek tennis player Stephanos Tsitsipas commented on the victory over Roger Federer in Melbourne.
– After the match, you said that you analyzed Roger from the age of 6. How did you study it?
– Do not think that it was something incredible, that I studied statistics and so on. But, I just watched the matches, tried to understand his combinations, as he thinks on the court. These players are the best examples if you want to succeed. I meant it under “analyzed”. Not at expert level. Just watched matches, cutting the best moments. Roger, Rafa, Novak – these are great examples of how to improve your game. I am sure it helped me.
– You spent some time with Andy Murray during the training session. Can you tell me what it gave you, how it affected your development?
– I trained with him three or four times, but that was a long time ago. Two years ago. He was invited to the Muratoglu Academy, where I have a base. We have trained a couple of times. I learned a lot. For example, that for great success you need to work a lot. Each of his training lasted more than three hours, he worked on many different things. I was inspired by the way he worked and developed, although at that moment I was already in Top-5, if I’m not mistaken. This helped me to better understand what is happening at this level.
– Today you played all 12 break points. How do you explain this? And how do you tune in to such important points?
– I just served well. Sometimes the first serve did not even go through, but I aggressively responded to his reception. I managed not to be mistaken, to keep on playing, to make him play. In most cases, he was wrong. I would say that psychology was very important here. I could break at any time, but did not, because I really wanted to win. I showed it on the court. It would be a completely different match if I could not cope with the pressure.
– What does this triumph mean to you?
– A flash of pure joy. It was a very emotional moment. I experienced joy, happiness, relief. I will never forget this moment. The match point will remain in my memory forever. I managed to finish the match and beat my idol. Today, my idol has become my rival.
– A year and a half ago, you played Challengers. How did that Stefanos differ from the present?
– I have already spoken about the changes in how I make decisions. The feed has greatly improved. And now I have no doubt where to file, what to do. The game is on the back line, of course. I added in physics, I can play longer, save aggression longer. And it seems to me that I became more confident. I know what to do on the court.
