MURRAY RIVER OPEN

February 3, 2021

James Duckworth

Press Conference

J. DUCKWORTH/U. HUMBERT

7-6, 6-4

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. Talk us through your game today and how you're feeling about it.

JAMES DUCKWORTH: Yeah, no it was a good match. Thought I served pretty well. There was only a couple point in that first set but the rest were serving pretty big. Pretty quick conditions. Getting that first serve and first strike was pretty important. I was able to sort of jump in a little bit, started that second set and was able to hold serve all the way through. But overall really happy.

Q. That's a big win on paper. Talk about the significance of beating a top-50 opponents?

JAMES DUCKWORTH: Yeah, it was, he's a really good player, watched him quite a bit sort of towards the end of last year. Especially when he won that tour event he beat Alex in the final in Antwerp, knew it was going to be a tough match but I've been practicing pretty well and was pretty confident in my game and obviously knew if I could continue to hold serve I could build pressure and I got a couple of chances and I was able to take them.

Q. It's been sort of a strange year, you were playing really well at the start of the year, the shut down you had a little bit of surgery. Does it feel like things are coming together again for you?

JAMES DUCKWORTH: Yeah, well it's been about, oh, nearly four months now where I've been able to serve full pace, pain-free without taking any anti-inflammatories. So I was on anti-inflammatory for a bit, sort of when I came back at US Open and French Open, I wasn't quite sort of where I wanted to be in terms of my pace on serve. I couldn't quite sort of get that top end sort of speed and my serve being a key shot it was sort of tough for me through that period. But it gradually just got better and stronger and I've been pain free for a few months now, so fingers crossed I can continue.

Q. Timing is perfect. Talk about the significance of being able to compete here in Melbourne both at this event and at the Australian Open?

JAMES DUCKWORTH: Oh, it's awesome. I've got such great memories of this tournament, I first played main draw in 2012 and I've had great support here ever since. I've just really enjoyed the atmosphere, the vibe and that's obviously been really tricky through COVID but Tennis Australia I can't have done an incredible job to put this on for us and all us players are extremely grateful that they have been able to jump through a lot of hoops and put this on and in such a safe environment as well. That's the main thing with what everything that's happening in the world. So, yeah, it's such a privilege to be able to play this event and really looking forward to my next match and Aussie Open as well.

Q. Do you have a favorite memory from Melbourne?

JAMES DUCKWORTH: Oh, in my first Aussie Open in second round I was playing Janko Tipsarevic, he was 8 in the world at the time and we were a set-all and someone in the crowd sort of jumped up and hushed everyone and started singing Old MacDonald Had a Farm and it was playing at Margaret Court Arena and there was 6,000 people, it was packed, they were all quacking. So that was really a sort of special moment. That was pretty cool.

Q. I'm guessing that would you love to hear the fans quacking again?

JAMES DUCKWORTH: A hundred percent, yeah, it was really cool, it was, yeah, a great sort of buzz and, yeah, it was giving me goosebumps.

Q. Talk about your preparation, talk about the value of the Aussies all practicing together at Xavier before these events?

JAMES DUCKWORTH: Yeah, so there was a few issues with borders for us players in Brisbane and Sydney. So we weren't sort of sure exactly when we were going to come down here because of lockdowns and then borders shut.

So a few of the players were able to get down to Melbourne a little bit earlier, and then John Millman and myself, we went to Canberra for a day and the borders open and we came to Brisbane. Ended up being eight or nine of us down at Xavier College practicing for close to two weeks. Yeah, we were all sort of pushing each other each day, seemed like everyone was hitting the ball pretty well, a lot of intense practices and it was great that we were all sort of able to get together as a group and push each other and I think it sort of is showing in some of these results so far.

Q. It's been a really solid week for Australian men, both in the event that you're playing and in the Great Ocean Road Open. Do you sort of spur each other along?

JAMES DUCKWORTH: Yeah, absolutely. We were all practicing together last couple of weeks, and on any given day anyone can beat the other person and you see someone do well and you think, Well, geez, I was beating them in practice, why can't I be there? And there's no reason why we can't have 10 guys in the top 100. We've got some good players, and hopefully we keep sort of pushing each other to get better and we can have that number of guys in that ranking.

Q. Yourself, you've got Moutet, I think, or Ramos next. Thoughts on that?

JAMES DUCKWORTH: Haven't played either of them. Both left-handers, again, so yeah, at least I'm used to hitting left-handed -- well returning a lefty serve. Although my coaches been hitting a lot of serves to me anyway, so I'm used to that. But, yeah, it will be tricky, Moutet plays with a lot of flare and Ramos is, he's been around a long time, quality player, made a Masters Series final. So either way it's going to be tough, I'm going to have to play well, I'm going to have to serve well, going to have to be aggressive and going to have to take chances.