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DUBAI DUTY FREE TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS

February 26, 2020

Andrey Rublev

Dubai, United Arab Emirates

A. RUBLEV/F. Krajinovic

7-6, 6-0

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. That was a pretty tough first set.
ANDREY RUBLEV: Yeah, was really tough first set. He was twice with a break. I think 4-1 then 5-3 serving. He had set points. It was really tough match.

I mean, the first set I think was the main one. After the first set we saw that he was really tired. That give me even more - how you say - more confidence to play. That's why the second set was more easy.

Q. He seemed very discouraged after the first set.
ANDREY RUBLEV: I don't know. I mean, yeah, with these conditions, you saw how tough it was, even for me. Both of us, we had long rallies, not really easy games on our serve. Every serve game was advantage, deuce, advantage. I remember I had breakpoints from the first game till the tiebreak. All the games had breakpoints.

Was really tough first set with a lot of points. Conditions here are really humid. Basically now both me and him, we just arrived from indoor. We play couple of tournaments indoor. This is our first tournament outdoor. It's not easy.

I understand him. Maybe if he would win the first set, it would be opposite situation with me (smiling).

Q. I'm sure this question has come up several times. There is a need for the younger lot like you to sort of step up and take over in men's tennis. What is your reaction to that?
ANDREY RUBLEV: I don't really understand.

Q. To step up your game.
ANDREY RUBLEV: What I need to improve?

Q. To challenge the top guys like Roger.
ANDREY RUBLEV: What we need to do?

Q. Yes.
ANDREY RUBLEV: I mean, you talk about only me or in general our generation?

Q. Start there.
ANDREY RUBLEV: I don't know. First of all, I'm not Roger, Rafa, all these top guys. I mean, first of all, I need to win better matches probably to talk in this way what I need. These three, four players, they're the best in history. You cannot compare for the moment. At least for sure me you cannot compare with them. Maybe you can ask some guys like Stan what he need to be more like them because he won also couple of Grand Slam.

But if you ask me, at least what I need to be let's say better player, to be maybe top 10, there is so many things I still need to improve. I need to be more strong mentally because I think out of top 20 guys I'm one of the weakest mentally.

Basically also there is so many things I can improve: my return, my serve, even physical-wise the way I move, the way I hit the ball. There are things I still can improve.

I think this is good. We'll see if I can improve them.

Q. How do you train yourself mentally?
ANDREY RUBLEV: Basically just by understanding, to accept the things. Basically how I start is to accept the things which I don't want to accept. For example, if I get tight on a match, I don't want to accept this. Many players, some players will say, The sun was on my eye, I missed this ball. But he get tight.

The first step is to accept that you get tight, and that's why you miss. Like this you start to understand better. Like this the other things comes more easy.

If you think and you talk with your coach who see also some things from outside, you listen, like this you can improve mentally I think. That's at least how I do.

Q. You say there's plenty to be worked on with the mental aspect with your game. Situations like today when an opponent has failed to perform on a desired level due to injury or illness, how does that affect you? Have you been able to execute your game until the end?
ANDREY RUBLEV: No, in my case I start to feel much more release. I see something is happening that he's not feeling well, so I release much more, I start to hit even better. In this case he helped me (laughter).

Q. Talk a little bit about the pressure your generation faces, social media, the distractions. Is it more pressure?
ANDREY RUBLEV: I mean, for sure young guy have different pressure. He face it for sure in a different way. He have his own problems.

In my case I remember I get little bit maybe blind with this. You think maybe everybody is saying you going to have good future, so you start to be more relax. Everybody say that, maybe comes more easy. You start to be little bit blind. You don't see the reality.

Then with the time I start to see the real life, it's not that easy, then I start to understand it in a different way.

Now, yeah, this is our sport. I mean, I think all the sports you will face the pressure. This is part of the sportsman life. This is normal. Especially tennis, we have every week, tournament every week with only one winner. Pressure you have every week.

You cannot - how you say - focus only on the week, like I need to win this week because then you have 30 more weeks of tournaments, you need to be also ready there.

In the end I think you adapt and you accept when the things is not going well. You know that next week you can improve them. That's good thing of our sport, that every week we have another chance to improve them. In the end I think something like that.

Q. When you were away for a long time because of your injuries, you spoke about your mental health. Can you expound a little bit more about how that has helped you now that you've come back.
ANDREY RUBLEV: I would say the first injury didn't help me that much because I got the second one. But, yeah, after the second injury I didn't play for two months. That was little bit the turning point. I start to see the things little bit different.

The moment is not about right now, right here. The moment is in general little bit like a marathon that you need to be ready every week.

I start to appreciate more what I have because I know in the end if I will be ready in the long-term I will have some good weeks. In the end, for the moment everything start to be everything better.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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