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ROLAND GARROS

June 3, 2017

Andy Murray

Paris, France

A. MURRAY/J. Del Potro

7-6, 7-5, 6-0

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. Do you think that's the best match you have played this year, perhaps?
ANDY MURRAY: I mean, definitely during the clay court season. I played some good matches beginning of the year. But definitely on the clay court season, you know, second or third sets were the best I have played, for sure.

Q. How do you rank Del Potro's forehand just for the sheer power of it? How crucial was the first set tiebreak for the whole match?
ANDY MURRAY: Yeah, I mean, obviously the first set was very important. I think it was like an hour 25 minutes. The conditions today were very slow and heavy, so coming from behind in those conditions can be difficult, because it feels like you have to work very hard for every point.

Obviously his reaction at the end of the first set, you know, he was pretty disappointed. He had some opportunities obviously to close it out, and he served a double fault in the tiebreak on one of the set points. But it was an important first set for a number of reasons, but the conditions today were very heavy and tough, not easy to come back from.

Q. What about his forehand?
ANDY MURRAY: I mean, it's a big shot. That's where you need to be smart when you're playing against him. I played quite a lot into his forehand today.

A lot of the guys with big forehands, they like to hit them from their backhand corner. It's a bit harder to read where someone is going to hit their forehand from that side. But he's very dangerous on the run with his forehand.

I think maybe on the clay it's a bit more difficult for him, because you're a bit more unstable on your feet. On the hard courts and the grass courts when he's moving to his forehand side, he hits it bigger than anyone. So you need to really pick the right moments to go into that stroke.

Q. It was obviously a tight battle but from a mental side. How big of a mental triumph for you was this match?
ANDY MURRAY: Yeah, it was obviously an important win for me and a big match, because, you know, Juan, when he's playing well, is one of the best players in the world.

You know, to be playing him this early on in the slam is obviously not easy, but it can be a very positive thing. You play someone that good, maybe you're a little bit more switched on. You know, your focus is maybe a little bit higher.

Yeah, a good one for me to get through, and, you know, each set I played better, I started to figure things out again during the match. You know, maybe didn't start the best, but made some adjustments, made some changes in the match tactically. You know, that's very positive, because I wasn't doing that for the last few tournaments and last couple of matches I have done it, and totally turned the matches around.

Q. When you see Juan Martin acting with such abject disappointment as he did at the end of the first set, leaning on the net for about, it seemed, five minutes, is the determination much more to really force it home in the next couple of games when you know he's that low?
ANDY MURRAY: Yeah, I mean, look, regardless of how someone reacts necessarily, you still have to expect that they are going to come out and start the set strong. You know, but I was starting to play a bit better towards the end of the set. I was starting to get a better read on the returns and I wanted to come out and make it really tough for him beginning of that second set, because, you know, he had had opportunities to close it out.

And like I said, it was like an hour and a half, hour and 25-minute set, you know, that he just lost. And I wanted to keep the momentum with me. Obviously got the break early and had a few chances to go up a double break, as well.

I was happy with how I started that set after, you know -- sometimes it can be difficult when you win the sets, as well, like that to keep your level and your concentration high. It can be easy to have a bit of a lull after a set like that, but I didn't.

Q. You seemed to keep on shushing yourself. Is that because you were determined not to get distracted?
ANDY MURRAY: I don't know why I was doing it. Why does it matter? What's the big deal? I don't get it.

If I say something and you guys ask me what I was saying, if I say nothing, you ask me why I don't say anything (smiling). What do you want me to do? What do you want me to say? It's irrelevant.

What's relevant is what happens, you know, during the points, you know. I think I played really well during the points today, and like in the last round I found a way to turn the match around.

I was thinking what was going on out there and I was thinking between the points, you know, what to do to try and give myself the best chance to win. That's the most important thing. Not what happens three or four seconds after a point finishes. It's what you're thinking just before you go up to the line and how you reset after losing tough points. I did that really well today.

Q. Delpo's left wrist problems, obviously his backhand isn't what it was before. He slices more. Doesn't always accelerate. Are there any challenges for you when facing someone whose two groundstrokes are so drastically different in terms of pace and all of that stuff?
ANDY MURRAY: Yeah, well, I think also the conditions today, it's not easy to generate pace out there. So, you know, on his backhand side, he's not -- he doesn't make many mistakes off that side. He's normally very, very solid, you know, on the backhand crosscourt.

But I tried, you know, each time I had the opportunity to move around and dictate the points with my forehand from my backhand corner. And yeah, I mean, if you just hit the ball to any player of his ability, you just hit the ball to the same side like 20 times in a row and they are not moving there, it's easy. They are not going to miss.

The important thing is to maybe get them moving into the side where they can't generate as much power. And to do that, you need to open up the other side of the court first.

It's important to get the balance right. At the beginning, I wasn't quite doing that, but as the match went on, I started to get the right balance.

Q. Possible next round opponents. Isner you played here last year and you have a good record against him. He's gotten wins over most of the other top guys, but not you. What makes that matchup go your way? You have had a pretty solid track against him.
ANDY MURRAY: Yeah, but a lot of close matches, as well. Very rarely easy matches. The match that we played end of last year in Paris was really tight. 7-5 in the third. I think when we played here last year there were two tiebreaks maybe. He had a set point, I think, first set tiebreak.

We played in Shanghai 2015, and that was really tight, as well. It was like 6-4 in the third.

I have had good results against him but a lot of close ones.

He obviously serves great. I think clay is not a bad surface for him, because he has a little bit more time to wind up on the groundstrokes.

And Khachanov I have never played against, but I practiced with him before he got onto the tour when he was like 350, and he was really good. Big, strong guy. Generates a lot of power. He's also got a big serve. But obviously not quite as experienced as John.

I have no idea what the score is in that one, but I'd imagine it would be pretty tight. There won't be lots of breaks there, I don't think.

Q. You have had a successful first week. Do you just concentrate on the next game now or do you actually spend a bit of mental time thinking about what you need to do to progress into the second week?
ANDY MURRAY: I think obviously there is, like after each match, when you speak with your -- for me, anyway, when I speak with my team, you know, the standards we set are pretty high, because, you know, you want to be playing well enough and doing the right things that are going to give you the best chance to win the tournament.

You know, but I'm not thinking, you know, after each round, I'm not thinking about winning. I didn't come here, you know, with the mindset that I'm definitely going to go a long way here. I was going to try and just get through the first round and hopefully feel better each day. That's been the case so far.

There was things I did today, that if I can do them consistently well, you know, over the next week or so, then, you know, I could do really well.

But I also know where I have come from, you know, even just 10 days or so ago. I was not playing well. So I need to respect that and work hard in practice and concentrate and, you know, if I do that, hopefully I can keep going further.

Q. When the crowd gasps and sighs every time he hits his forehand in the middle of the rally, do you ever notice that that's happening?
ANDY MURRAY: No. I mean, more when the point ends. You know, if it's a point-ending shot where if he smokes a forehand runner on the run, you know, you notice it, because it's a big hit. His grunt, it's a very manly, like a very manly grunt, as well (smiling).

Yeah, you notice it more on point-ending shots, but during the point, I don't notice it as much.

Q. How different has it been mentally coming into a Grand Slam maybe not so sure how it's going to go, maybe not so confident. You talked last year being very confident on clay and having a good chance to win the title. Where do you feel you're at now sort of mentally?
ANDY MURRAY: Well, I believe in myself, so even when things aren't going well, I believe I can turn it around. It's not easy, but, you know, if you do the right things in practice and, you know, trust it, it's going to come if you work hard and do all the right things, then it generally does.

You know, the five-set format has definitely helped that, so I have maybe not been as anxious going into some of the matches, because I know there is some time to turn it around.

But mentally I feel pretty good just now. I'm happy with how the match was today. Like I said, I'm working things out whilst I'm playing the matches, and that's the really, really important part of my game is making adjustments. You know, the tactical side is very important for me. And when that's going well, you know, that's really positive for me. Even when I went behind today, I wasn't worried. Same in the match with Klizan, I made changes and turned the match around.

So that's the most important thing for me just now.

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