ROLAND GARROS

May 24, 2022

Benjamin Bonzi

Press Conference

F. TIAFOE/B. Bonzi

7-5, 7-5, 7-6

THE MODERATOR: Thank you for coming to see us after a real battle. So the match, you lost the match, but it was a very high-level match and it sometimes switched due to some small details, especially in this last set, what's your analysis?

BENJAMIN BONZI: Yes, it was a very tough match. There were a lot of tactics involved. So at the end of the day it comes down to some points in the sets and I think in the first two sets I think he was playing a bit better than me, I think he deserved to win the sets, although I could have reversed the situation, but he was managing better on the important moments.

In the third set I think I had the upper hand at 6-2, 6-3. I was running forward, I had opportunities often, I was a little bit in front of him and I was sending balls back. But he was really hitting the balls back hard. There were a lot of small things like that.

And then in the tiebreak, same thing again, his passing shots are great. It's just small things, but, yes, it's a shame.

Q. The fact that the tiebreak was broken quickly, trying to stick to the score, but he really had the upper hand, did that prevent you from playing freely?

BENJAMIN BONZI: Well, as I said, I think that he was playing a bit better than I was during two sets. It was difficult to find my pace in the match with the conditions, there's quite a lot of wind going around and at the beginning of the match I was making a lot of errors, a lot of errors from the baseline and it was not easy.

Although he had slightly the upper hand I didn't think that I was really far behind, but each end of the set I managed to turn the situation around, I got the dynamics going and would come back, but the first two sets it was the same thing, he broke me at 4-4, 5-5, and it's just a question of small details.

There weren't that many, I wasn't that successful either, I was doing some passing shots at key moments. But it was not a bad match, it was not the match of the year either for me, but, so it's a question of small details throughout the match.

Q. So are you full of hope after this match or are you feeling somewhat regretful?

BENJAMIN BONZI: Neither. I think we can say that it's a good match, that there was a big battle for three hours, physically it was quite tough, the intensity remained high throughout.

And, well, does it give me hope? Yes, but at one point, at that level I know that I'm able to win and beat those players. I haven't yet won a Grand Slam, but the matches have been very close, so it confirms what I can do because I'm not far away from it without playing an incredible match.

And of course I'm somewhat regretful because I would have liked to have played better, have another match to look forward to here, but that's the way it is.

Q. What really made the difference? Is it the experience, is it a bit of authority, like experience, what is lacking for you?

BENJAMIN BONZI: Well today it was a bit of intensity in terms of the tactics in the match, better choices sometimes, manage things differently, try to do things differently in my service, maybe force a serve, and so that there's a physical breakthrough as well.

But it's tennis, you need to play in the heat of the moment, you have to make decisions fast. Unfortunately, I think it's a match where each set there are four important points in the key moments and it's a shame maybe if, with a little bit more lucidity, I could have managed to take one of those points and we don't know what could have happened.

Q. What does Lionel think?

BENJAMIN BONZI: So what we talked about, that's what I said, I have the feeling that all of the sets are very close, that things don't necessarily go in my favor at the ends of the sets.

But he was far stronger in the important moments and maybe that's where my choices maybe were not right in what I was trying to do and the way I wanted to get them working maybe it was not the right thing to do at that time. That is part of being lucid and making the right choices, you have to learn.

It remains a Grand Slam, a win in five sets, with three, yes, in five sets, but it's frustrating.

Q. Do you take pleasure on that court, there was a lot of atmosphere, a lot of people, did you enjoy that?

BENJAMIN BONZI: Yes, I enjoyed playing on the court. It would have been even better if I could have taken one set to maybe really get things going. And sometimes I was managing to really play freely and have the encouragement of the audience and I think sometimes I wasn't playing well enough and my game was not good enough to really get things going and to put him under pressure.

So, we had to manage to take, I had to manage to take him through to the fourth set and see what happened, but it wasn't the case.