US OPEN

September 2, 2021

Alexander Zverev

Press Conference

A. ZVEREV/A. Ramos-Vinolas

6-1, 6-0, 6-3

THE MODERATOR: Give us your thoughts on the match and your level of play through the first week of the Open.

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: I'm happy that I'm in the third round. I think today in general was a good match for me. I think maybe Albert, you've got to ask him that, but didn't play his best. But I'm happy. I'm happy with how the match went.

I had two very different matches in my first round and second round, with Sam being one of the biggest servers on tour and Albert being one of the best baseliners on tour. Happy I won both in straight sets and looking forward to what's ahead.

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. When you went out for the match or before the match, did you think that this could be this sort of a day? Seemed like you were in a hurry to get to a dinner appointment.

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: I've got a Mets game to watch tonight (smiling).

I know that Albert is somebody that has a lot of wins over top-10 guys, that has beaten Federer on a hard court so I know he's a difficult player. Once the match went my way the way it went, I did try to play as quick as possible. I did try to not give him time. I did try to keep on pushing.

Yeah. It worked out well for me.

Q. How important is something like that at this stage of a tournament to be really compact and get through these matches quickly, not knowing what could be down the track?

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: I think it was always a problem of mine in the beginning of my career that I always spent a lot of hours, a lot of time in the beginning of Grand Slam tournaments.

So it's nice to have kind of two matches, I think I played two matches against two good players. I think Sam is a very good player on a hard court, has a lot of titles on hard courts, has beaten great guys here, winning that in straight sets. And Albert as well, Albert is somebody who causes a lot of trouble to top guys.

For me, it's great to have that, and I'm in the third round now. I'm looking forward to, as I said, to what's ahead.

Q. I wanted to ask you what you know about the New York Mets. But a more serious question, in Cincinnati you sort of kick-started this whole process. My question is: What have you learned that this has gone on for a while now, what have you learned from this process and what actually would you like to see?

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: Which process?

Q. The process about going off court for extended periods of time.

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: Look, I mean -- sorry, my mom is calling me. I'm not going to talk bad about anybody anymore, because I have been talked bad about for a very long time and it's not a great feeling. I don't want to do that.

I think there needs to be some adjustments in some rules by the ATP. But it does get frustrating for you if you just won a set and then somebody walks off for 10-plus minutes or whatever.

I don't want to be negative anymore, and I have said everything I said. I said it in my first-round press conference. I don't know what else to add.

I did see that he went off again yesterday, which I found -- yeah, I think you guys can't imagine how we as players we find that, and then he wins the next set 6-0, because I think Mannarino's back got a little bit stiff or something.

And that's happened, because as Andy also said, in six minutes, seven minutes in professional sports, in a high-intense match, your body does cool down. It's very difficult to come back and play on the same level as you did if you're just sitting down for six, seven, eight, nine minutes, or ten-plus minutes.

So it's from a physical standpoint sometimes it's not that easy.

Q. We can say you're in the zone now. How did you reach this mindset?

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: I think it comes naturally. I think obviously the process started at the Olympics for me, and the match against Novak. That kind of started it off, because I was down badly, and I managed to win with great tennis.

And also, I think it was very important for me to kind of back it up in Cincinnati, because a lot of the times players that for the first time in their career win something really big like a Grand Slam title or a gold medal, they do tend to go downhill a little bit.

So it was important for me to go to Cincinnati, to a place where I have never won a match before this year, and have a great tournament.

Yeah, I'm looking forward to what's coming here, because opponents are not going to get easier, a lot of players are hungry. I think it's going to be a fun next ten days.

Q. You were especially dominant with your first and second serve throughout the first two matches. How important and how good does that feel to just start a tournament like that, especially with the various struggles you and other players have had with their second serve throughout the tournaments?

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: I think we talked about it a lot. My serve is kind of the key to my game. When it's working I'm playing great. When it's not, I'm losing matches like I did at Wimbledon.

So I think it's no secret that my serve is probably the most important shot in my game, and I'm happy with how it's working. I hope I continue to get better throughout the next few matches and everything else. As I said, the matches are not going to get easier and I will need that to be my weapon.