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WESTERN & SOUTHERN OPEN

August 16, 2019

Richard Gasquet

Cincinnati, Ohio

R. GASQUET/R. Agut

7-6, 3-6, 6-2

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. A good start to the match and the breaker. Then you lost the second set, but you were able to get an early break in the third. How were you able to turn it around after the second-set loss?
RICHARD GASQUET: Yeah, it was a tough first set. Of course it was very important for me to win the tiebreak, playing one hour. With the heat and humidity, always important to win.

Second set, yeah, had a little bit tired. Of course was tough. He's playing -- he doesn't miss a lot, so it's very difficult to do points.

Yeah, I knew if I wanted to win I had to put a lot of energy in the start of the third. Yeah, I managed to do it. I served better. It was a great third set.

I played faster. I tried to start well. I run well. It was a great third set. I had to do it to win a guy like him.

Q. Bautista Agut is having his best season on the tour right now. What about his game has elevated in recent years? And what are you most impressed with?
RICHARD GASQUET: Yeah, he's a great player. Of course he did a good year. He's top 10 now. Yeah, as I said, he doesn't miss. He's playing fast. He runs well. He has no weakness in his game. He's a tough competitor.

Physically he's very good, so it's always a battle when you need to play against him. You need to play your best tennis to win a guy like him.

Q. (Indiscernible) said when he was coming back from his injuries he considered maybe retiring and he had to talk to himself about it. Did you ever feel that way when you were coming back?
RICHARD GASQUET: No, my plan was not to retire, but of course I was scared. You never know what can happen when you have surgery. You never know if you're gonna play again.

It was my case. Sometimes it was tough even to walk after a hit. Yeah, I had tough moments but I practiced a lot. I tried to recover, to play matches and matches. Yeah, day after day I felt better. Last week was good winning Nishikori, as I said. I felt more confident. I felt I could play on this level. It made the difference.

Now, as I said, I was not better when I was 7 in the world, but physically, yeah, I need to recover day after day, tournament after tournament. I think I can come back in a good level still if I had the surgery.

Q. You and Goffin have been on the tour for a long time but you have only played twice. What are you expecting from him tomorrow?
RICHARD GASQUET: No, it will be tough. He's a great player. He's playing very fast.

Yeah, I need to recover now a little bit and of course to be ready for tomorrow, because as I said, he doesn't miss. He's playing fast, especially with the backhand.

It will be a tough battle for me. It's the semis. I have nothing to lose, so I try my best.

Q. Being in the position you were in, having surgery, not knowing what will happen after, has that allowed you to feel more free on the court how and just play without as much pressure?
RICHARD GASQUET: I don't know. It's tough to say. Tough to say, because, yeah, I know how tough it was to come back.

Of course when you're on court in quarterfinal, you want to enjoy it. I know the moments I had in the start of the year, so I just wanted to enjoy, to fight. Yeah, of course it's not easy to come back after six months, but I'm here. I'm in semis tomorrow.

As I said, I'm very happy with it, because I was not -- yeah, when I stopped in May, I would sign to be here in semis in Cincinnati.

Q. If they put you on center court every time, you'd be okay, right?
RICHARD GASQUET: Yeah, of course with Andy first match I played more on center court. Yeah, I was not expecting this. Of course I'm a protected ranking here. I'm 56 in the world.

Of course to play three times on center court, I was not -- yeah, when this tournament started, if you told me I would play three times, four times on the court, I would be surprised.

Q. Svetlana Kuznetsova just won, and she's the same age as you. Aside from the physical improvements in tennis over the years, is there a mental difference that has allowed you to play for longer and to be more motivated for longer?
RICHARD GASQUET: Yeah, it's true. The physical condition is much better now. Of course when I start in 2004 or '05, it was not the same. The sport grew up a lot, especially on the physical part.

Now everybody is fit, everybody is strong. That's the biggest difference with 15 years ago.

Yeah, that's why maybe you can see older people playing. Of course I still want to play, to care a lot for your body.

Yeah, it's true everybody is playing 35, 36, and when you see the others playing so late, you maybe want to do the same. Yeah, it's the biggest difference when I started and now. The key is the physical condition.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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