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US OPEN

August 23, 2019

Alexander Zverev

New York, NY, USA

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. New York is a very exciting place, and you are one of the most talented players on the tour. How are you feeling about being in New York and being ready for the US Open?
ALEXANDER ZVEREV: I mean, I feel okay. Obviously it's been not an easy summer for me, haven't played the best. Now I'm just trying to kind of regain my full confidence. It's about going match by match for me. It's about doing the best I can for now.

We'll see how it goes. It's the first time in probably a few years where I'm not a favorite in any way at a Grand Slam, and it takes some pressure off, as well. It's a different mindset for me now.

We'll see how it goes, but I'm excited.

Q. Obviously among a lot of the betting people, Novak is considered kind of a heavy favorite. Not even just a little favorite, looks like. How do the players look at the way this field is shaping up going into the tournament, and how many guys do you think have a real shot to win it?
ALEXANDER ZVEREV: Oh, no, there are a few guys that have a real shot to win it. Don't count out any of the young guys, either. Obviously Dominic Thiem has been playing great. Daniil Medvedev has been playing great. Obviously the big three we don't need to talk about.

Of course, Novak is the big favorite, no question about it, but there are other guys that have been playing great tennis. I think those guys will be able to do some damage, and we'll see how it goes. Obviously, as I said, there are other guys apart from the big three that can go deep here.

Q. You rose very quickly in the rankings, and do you think maybe it is a little bit unrealistic to expect so many of you so soon when, you know, some players they did lose more in the beginning. Maybe because you were already high in the rankings, so there is a lot to be expected from you?
ALEXANDER ZVEREV: Yeah, I mean, I rose up probably two-and-a-half years ago very fast. Won my first Masters two-and-a-half years ago barely as a 20-year-old. So expectations coming, a lot of (indiscernible) coming as well my way.

But I mean, obviously things like that are good because people talk about you but also bad because there is extra pressure on you. We, as tennis players, need to learn how to handle it and deal with it, and some players do better than others.

Q. What do you feel like you have to do mentally to break through at this tournament?
ALEXANDER ZVEREV: First of all, I need to get my game back. My game hasn't been where I wanted to be in the last few months. This is the most important thing. You have to play great tennis to do well at a Grand Slam.

First of all, get my game back, and then we can talk about the mental stuff after.

Q. You said you were looking to regain your confidence. Has anything specific occurred that caused you to not win as many matches as you previously had been, or what?
ALEXANDER ZVEREV: I mean, obviously I talked about it a lot. Personal things that I had outside the court, they were a distraction for me.

I mean, as I said in the summer, there is a lot of things that I had to do that I didn't do in the last few years, so obviously those kind of things were a new learning process. I'm still a young guy, still only 22 years old. There are still a lot of things that I needed to learn. Not only on the tennis court but in life in general.

Those things I think every young person has to go through. The only difference between me and other young people is that I have to play in front of 20,000 people sometimes. You know, that's a little bit extra on you.

So, yeah, that's why maybe the results haven't been as great as I wanted them to be.

Q. Some players play without a coach on the tour. You have a great team, but how important it is to have a voice out there that you can trust and that, you know, is being good for you in your game and your goals?
ALEXANDER ZVEREV: There is nobody I trust more than my father, so I have that voice. I have that person around me. So it's not like I'm alone right now.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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