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MUTUA MADRID OPEN

May 9, 2019

Stan Wawrinka

Madrid, Spain

S. WAWRINKA/K. Nishikori

6-3, 7-6

THE MODERATOR: Questions in English.

Q. How are you feeling your form is right now?
STAN WAWRINKA: I'm feeling good, really happy with the match, the performance today. I think again it was a really good match, great level. Happy to win in two sets and I was playing and serving really good, being aggressive, so a great victory for me.

Q. And it could be Rafa up next. Can you talk us through the challenges of facing him on the clay?
STAN WAWRINKA: Yeah, it could be, him or Tiafoe, they are playing tonight. It will be interesting. I'll try to watch the match that's for sure. Rafa, it's a challenge to play him on the clay court. I have played him many times. It's always difficult to play him.

Again, I'm happy the way I'm playing so far. I'm happy to be in the quarterfinal again, gaining confidence little by little. I know I'm playing well. I know I'm physically good, so we will see.

Q. You have played against Kei quite often. When you play against him, do you prepare specific strategies or plans, or do you just to do your best?
STAN WAWRINKA: Well, I always try to do my best (smiling). But I think, yeah, we know each other really well. We played many times matches. We practiced a lot in the past few years also since we are on the tour. So we really know each other really well. We know what we have to do against each other.

It is always the one who is going to be the most aggressive. I always try to dictate the match and I always try to serve well, to make him move a lot. And again, it's always been some difficult matches, and today was a tough one and I'm happy to win in two sets.

Q. Politics.
STAN WAWRINKA: Politics (laughing). Let's go. I'll put my hat. What's happened again?

Q. Tim Mayotte tweeted you...
STAN WAWRINKA: What did he say?

Q. 'I'm very, very confused, disappointed that myself and other qualified candidates not allowed to present to council in Rome for election. Those concerned about direction of sport should ask why it is.' Tagged Novak, Brad Gilbert, who he also said should have been on the list and you. And he said that he hadn't been given a reason. 'It stinks.'
STAN WAWRINKA: (Laughing) Okay.

Q. I think...
STAN WAWRINKA: What is the question (laughing)?

Q. I think he is saying that he thinks that the player council haven't selected potential board members to present who have different opinions to the last group. Is that something that you would be concerned about?
STAN WAWRINKA: We need to see who is going to be elected (laughing). For sure, at the end of the day, the player council will choose who is going to be on the board. Again, I think we need to see what's going to happen in the next few months, who they are going to pick as the board members. What they are going to do with the CEO position. And how they want to see it. All we know -- all I know from my place is that they change someone. They have not been happy with some things so let's see what they will do different to make it better. That's what we have to see how they are going to do that.

Q. There have been some concerns from people inside the game who think they might be putting in a temporary board member so that Justin could come back in three years' time. Would you accept Justin coming back to the game three years on? Do you think he would have served his sentence by then? Would that be a good thing for tennis if he came back?
STAN WAWRINKA: (Laughing) I'm not the president. I'm not the CEO. I'm nothing in ATP. I'm just a player. I feel like you ask me a question I don't have any power to answer. So far, it's a question for in three years' time. Since that, a lot of things can happen in the players council and in the board. We don't know who is going to be the CEO right now. And that is probably the most important spot in the ATP. So that should be the main concern in the next few months, to find out who is going to be at this spot and what is going to happen in the next few years.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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