MUTUA MADRID OPEN

May 6, 2021

Casper Ruud

Press Conference

C. RUUD/S. Tsitsipas

7-6, 6-4

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. What has this clay season done for your confidence? Are you surprised at all by the success you're enjoying?

CASPER RUUD: Well, it's given me more and more confidence the more matches I won. I'm feeling good, especially here in Europe on the clay. I think it was a part of the season last year that I was looking extremely much forward to. I felt it was taken a bit away from not me but all the players when everything got postponed, some of the tournaments were canceled. That was a shame.

I think I just kept my motivation for a year and have the double motivation to be here this year luckily. This was one of the tournaments that we didn't get to play last year. I'm just trying to enjoy the moment and take care of the chances that I get.

Yeah, Monte-Carlo and here I've been playing really well. I hope to continue for the next weeks. Also because there are still some tournaments left on the clay, and I have a tough match tomorrow.

Q. Going into a match like this against a guy who's leading the Race to Turin, playing amazing tennis, is your strategy to keep him from playing his game? That sort of seems to be what's helped him against so many players.

CASPER RUUD: Yeah, no, definitely. He is one of the best players this year on the tour, one of the ones who has won the more matches. He's won his first Masters 1000 in Monte-Carlo. Barcelona he was very close to getting the title there, as well.

But the conditions are a bit different here than other clay courts with the fast shots, the ball traveling faster through the air because of the altitude. You get a lot of free points with the serve that you don't usually do on the clay courts. I think that also today went a bit in my advantage. I felt like he was doing some mistakes that he doesn't always do. I was just trying to take care of the chances that I got, like I said.

You just have to think that you're not playing against the best player of the world this year, and that you're playing just another opponent. I think what helped me a bit today is we played each other in the juniors, we kind of grew up playing among each other. For me, he's someone that I've been playing with before, so I think that also helps a little bit when you're playing such a big and good player.

Q. When you get these big wins, what do you learn about yourself in terms of your level? Today wasn't just your forehand, but your serve. Does it teach you something about how complete of a player you need to be?

CASPER RUUD: Yeah, I think so. Like I said earlier, it gives you a lot of confidence, gives you belief in yourself that you can compete with these guys, actually beat them. It's probably the best confidence booster you can give to yourself.

Those guys in the top 10 is what all the other players are looking up to, trying to figure out how to get there themselves. When you beat the players within the top 10, it feels that you're closer to reaching that goal than maybe if you're losing to them or losing to a lower-ranked players, for instance.

It's much based on confidence. Also, yeah, you know you need to be a complete player, you need to have as few weaknesses as possible. Whenever you play a top-10 player, they will probably be able to find out what your weakness is and attack it.

I think a lot of things have improved in my game. Even though I don't do the big, flashy shots with my backhand, it has become a more reliable shot. I can play it more heavy in the defense than maybe I was able to before. I am still able to run around my forehand and go for the winners from that side. I'm definitely becoming a more complete player now than I would say I was a year ago, yeah, months and years ago.

Q. How did the Rafael Nadal Academy help in your career and success? How is your relationship with Pedro Clar, Tomeu Slava right now, your career and in your success here in Madrid, last two seasons?

CASPER RUUD: Yeah, no, they have definitely helped me a lot. It's been good for me to get different views of my game from not only my father helping me, but also Pedro Clar has helped me. He's more involved now. Like you said, Tomeu Slava helped me a bit before. Now he's the main coach of Munar. I don't work close with Tomeu any more. But he's involved.

Whenever I go to the academy, we talk with each other, practice with each other. He's still helping me as much as he can.

Pedro Clar is the one that more travels with me. We have a very good relationship. He's here this week. He's also enjoying. He's been with me with also some of my biggest tournaments and wins. When I won my first tournament in Buenos Aires, my first semifinal in Rome last year, Pedro was with me.

I think it's helped me a lot. Also getting help from Toni. Now Toni is helping Felix more personally. But he's always involved with my tennis at some point in my career, is trying as good as he can also to help. Also Rafa, of course, he helped me a lot the last years.

I think now I have come to the point where we can play each other almost every week if we can end up playing each other. I'm more now maybe a competition for him than just a student in his academy. Of course, he's helping me and he's involved. He has also the focus of course about his career also.

Q. What is your reaction to find out that in the lower part of the draw there are no top-10 players but Berrettini, who is still playing and is not yet qualified? All people who are not seeds in the top 10. Does it help your confidence? Are you expecting a great chance to win the tournament?

CASPER RUUD: Well, I think like you said, the draw is maybe a bit more open in the bottom half now that Medvedev lost and Stefanos lost today. It's more open, yes. There are not that many high seeds left in the lower part of the draw.

But tomorrow I'm playing Bublik. He's definitely playing very well here in Madrid. He also won three matches. He's serving unbelievable. He can do anything with the ball. He can play dropshots and winners, the most incredible shots. Underarm serve. I have to tomorrow be prepared for everything.

It's the fair and square match tomorrow. He's a tough opponent. I have to focus about one match at a time. But definitely this also helps to motivate to fight even more, to be able to reach the longer steps of the tournament.