INTERNAZIONALI BNL D'ITALIA

September 17, 2020

Lorenzo Musetti

Press Conference

L. MUSETTI/K. Nishikori

6-3, 6-4

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. I wonder if you can tell me, if you can look back on your junior days, can you tell me what you think the biggest improvements you have made in your game since 2019 are?

LORENZO MUSETTI: For sure when I was winning the Australian Open, I played a final like really a fight in three hours of match, super-tiebreaker 10, and then 14-12, saved one match point.

So I always used to be warrior, a fighter, but not with like with the constant of my -- I had a lot of ups and downs during my last year.

Now, this month I tried to maintain calm and to stay positive on court, and I think it's the best improvement that I had in these few weeks. Here in Rome I'm feeling really well. Even today I think I won mentally, because tough points I always played good. So I think the key was this, the important points.

Q. What kind of impression do you have about Kei before the match? If you have any different impression about him after you played against him? And I understand that you are practicing at Mouratoglou. Since when you start practicing at his academy?

LORENZO MUSETTI: I mean, I'm not really practicing there. I have like collaboration with them since -- before that I won the juniors, I'm part of Champ Seed Foundation that is a foundation of Patrick.

Also Tsitsipas, Tseng, and Cory Gauff is there, and Popyrin. I think they help the process of, like, economically and with instructor of the academy. So it's long time ago that I collaborate with Mouratoglou.

Then, yeah, Kei is a fantastic player. I knew that he was stopped by an injury and he had an operation.

So I try to take the chance that I had tonight, and, I mean, was really -- I mean, I'm really proud of myself on what I did tonight. Kei is a fantastic player. He has timing with especially with the backhand down the line fantastic.

I mean, I hope that he recovers with the injury, and, I mean, I wish him good luck for the rest of the season.