THE CHAMPIONSHIPS

July 4, 2022

Cristian Garin

Press Conference

C. GARIN/A. de Minaur

2-6, 5-7, 7-6, 6-4, 7-6

THE MODERATOR: Give us your thoughts on reaching the quarterfinal.

CRISTIAN GARIN: Yeah, I mean, was a very long match, very tough from the beginning until the end. We play almost every point was a rally. I think Alex, he's one of the best players on grass for me. I knew it, that it was going to be a match like the one that it was.

But I just tried to gave my best, to be aggressive. I think the first two sets I start a bit slow, and he was more aggressive than me. He was playing better. In the third set, I think in the 5-All I play an unreal point. After that I won confidence. I said, I have to go for it. The rest, it was amazing.

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. When you were two sets to love down, that meant that you lost all nine sets you'd ever played against Alex de Minaur. At that point how do you find the belief to win three in a row?

CRISTIAN GARIN: Yeah, I just tried to play point by point, not think about the result. I know when you are two sets down, if you want to win, you have to play at least three hours. I tried to not think about that.

In that moment I tried to think about how I'm playing and what I have to do. That's what I did.

I think in the second set I had my chance, but I wasn't feeling sure about how I was playing. I was not clear with my game.

After the second set, I said, I need to change, I need to go for it. That's what I did.

Q. What does it mean to you to be into a quarterfinal of not only Wimbledon, but a Grand Slam for the first time? You must see that as a huge step.

CRISTIAN GARIN: Yeah, is something very special for me. Wimbledon I said, I said this many times, is my favorite tournament. Every time that I play this tournament is something special I feel.

To be in the quarterfinals here is a dream. I will try to enjoy it. I will try to give my best in the next round. But I think from the beginning of the tournament I been enjoying. I been working hard, as well. The tournaments before Wimbledon on grass I didn't play well, but I work so hard to be in good shape in this week.

I'm having the results that I want now.

Q. Sometimes players from Chile are more associated with clay.

CRISTIAN GARIN: I said this is my favorite tournament, not my favorite surface (smiling).

Q. How have you developed this liking for the grass?

CRISTIAN GARIN: I think grass is very fun for me. I have to change a little bit the way that I play. I think here on this surface you have to be aggressive.

This is my fifth Wimbledon, so I have experience I think on this. I have winning experience on this surface. I think I'm improving every year.

Q. Could you tell us, what did you feel when you saw the draw, you had to play Berrettini the first round?

CRISTIAN GARIN: Good question.

When I saw the draw, I'm not going to lie, I was upset because last few weeks I did pretty well, a good work, but I lost in two first rounds. I was playing well on practice. I was beating good players.

Obviously Matteo and Novak for me was the favorites for this tournament. It was crazy because I knew that Matteo got COVID, but I knew that he wasn't playing like one hour before the match. I didn't know. It was a big surprise for me. As I said, Matteo for me was one of the favorite for the tournament.

Yeah, I was upset, but I'm here. I'm still playing.

Q. Send him a message.

CRISTIAN GARIN: Yeah, maybe after the tournament.

Q. You play Nick Kyrgios next. What do you make of him as a player? What have you made of some of his antics?

CRISTIAN GARIN: Say again. Sorry?

Q. What do you make of Nick as a player, and the not-so-pleasant things that happened during this tournament?

CRISTIAN GARIN: I think Nick is very good player obviously. For me maybe the best serve on tour. Yeah, I'm in quarterfinals. You know you will play the best players in the world. He is for me one of the guys that I like to watch. He's very good for tennis.

Yeah, I mean, today I had a long battle, almost five hours. I just want to recover, eat well and rest. Tomorrow with my team we will think about the match.

But in these rounds you play the best. For me, Nick is one of the best obviously on grass.

Q. I lived in Chile and never saw a grass court in Chile.

CRISTIAN GARIN: There is no.

Q. There are none?

CRISTIAN GARIN: There's no.

Q. How does it feel to have some of the Chilean community supporting you? Does it feel good?

CRISTIAN GARIN: Yeah, it feels good. Every match that I play here in Wimbledon since I remember, there's always Chileans. Yeah, it's amazing. Today the court was full. It's so nice to play with a full court.

The crowd here is also amazing. They love tennis. For me as a player, is so nice to see that.

Q. Two unseeded players playing for a semifinal place, do you see that as a huge opportunity, for you and Nick?

CRISTIAN GARIN: Yeah, I think Nick has to be seeded because he for me is one of the best players on the tour and on grass obviously. I mean, the opportunities you have to build. If we are in this round, we both beat good players.

I don't see like an opportunity. I just want to enjoy, play my best, and fight every point as I always do.

Q. Fillol and Cornejo were the runner-up in the Davis Cup in '76 from Chile. Then Gonzalez was in 2009 in the quarterfinals. Have you met them? Do you know them? What kind of relationship you have with the three players?

CRISTIAN GARIN: You mentioned Rios, Gonzalez, and Massu?

Q. No. Fillol, Cornejo. Rios I didn't say. And then Gonzalez.

CRISTIAN GARIN: Yeah, in Chile we don't have many tennis players. But the ones that we had, they did very good results. They did very good careers.

Yeah, obviously I know them. I don't have a close relation with them. Obviously sometimes we talk by phone, but not a close relation.

With Fernando, I know him more than the others. With Fernando, whenever I'm in Chile, I play with him. We practice. We are good friends. We go always out for dinners when I'm in Chile. Yeah, we have a very good relation.

I have a good relation with Fernando. He was my idol when I was growing up. Yeah, it's so nice to have him close.