AUSTRALIAN OPEN

January 19, 2022

Matteo Berrettini

Press Conference

M. BERRETTINI/S. Kozlov

6-1, 4-6, 6-4, 6-1

THE MODERATOR: Congratulations. We know that you had some issues during your first-round match. Are you fully recovered?

MATTEO BERRETTINI: Yeah, I am. I didn't go to the bathroom for that reason. So, yeah, I'm feeling better, yeah.

THE MODERATOR: Questions?

Q. I just wanted to hear your thoughts on how you played today and what makes him such a tough opponent?

MATTEO BERRETTINI: I think I didn't play the best tennis match that I ever played in my life, but I think also my opponent was the one that made me play like this. He's a really tricky player. I didn't know. I never play him, even in juniors.

He's trying to kind of like falling asleep, you know, with his game. Like he's not hitting the ball I think on purpose sometimes not that hard, so then your feet are going to go slower, and then, yeah, I think he did his web, you know, like a spider, and I fell into it.

I think I started to play better and better, and I kind of understood better how he was playing. At the end I think also he was cramping a little bit, so I don't know, I was physically better, I guess (smiling).

Q. There is only one man who has beaten you in the last three slams, and he's not in the draw this tournament. I'm curious, how does that...

MATTEO BERRETTINI: I couldn't understand the last part of the question, but if I got it right, it's how am I feeling with the fact that I lost to just one guy in the slams?

Q. No, that Novak is not in this tournament.

MATTEO BERRETTINI: Oh, I mean, of course it feels weird and the whole situation was tough for everybody, especially for him. Personally, when I step in a tournament, in a slam, I obviously have "fear" of losing against anybody. I know that every match is really tough. You can see today it was really a fight.

So obviously he's the best player in the world. He won the last three or four slams, I don't know, so for sure is changing, but now I have to focus about Carlos, that he's a pretty good player, too.