THE CHAMPIONSHIPS

June 28, 2022

Alastair Gray

Press Conference

A. GRAY/Tseng C.

6-3, 6-3, 7-6

THE MODERATOR: Tell us how you're feeling.

ALASTAIR GRAY: Yeah, feeling pretty great. You know, first singles match at Wimbledon this year. Yeah, to come away with a win in straight sets, pretty amazing.

Yeah, something I've dreamed of as a kid, so pretty special time.

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. Spoke to Ryan earlier, he talked about you two looking to get a house together. I think together you've put on £56,000 towards your deposit today. Not many housemates will be able to look back on a day they both won their first Wimbledon matches. Must be pretty special.

ALASTAIR GRAY: Yeah, no, it is pretty special, to be honest. Both our debuts today. Then we're playing doubles together tomorrow, as well.

Ryan and I are great friends, training partners. We have the same coach. So to be going through this with him is just amazing. Pretty cool, yeah.

Q. Tell me about the one-handed backhand. There's not many around, not in British tennis either. Tell me about where it came from. Something you've always done and why?

ALASTAIR GRAY: Yeah, so I think I switched when I was around 9 or 10. I would do a Connors. I'd take the left hand off. It was always just more smooth for me to just play with one. Yeah, it started developing well, so I stuck with it.

Obviously at a young age, when you don't have the strength, you don't see the results straightaway. It's a bit of a vulnerability when you're younger.

But I had some good coaches around me who were pushing for me to do that. Yeah, I'm thankful that I did it, yeah.

Q. Ryan did say that you were looking to somewhere maybe in this area.

ALASTAIR GRAY: Yeah.

Q. Having seen the prices around this area...

ALASTAIR GRAY: Having seen the prices, yeah (laughter)?

Q. You may have enough for a deposit now between you.

ALASTAIR GRAY: We were thinking about renting, yeah (smiling). Something around this area would probably be a bit of a box.

But, yeah, we'll see. Hopefully win a couple matches, then maybe we'll be able to get something a little bit bigger.

Q. As a performance, you must be absolutely thrilled. Nearly 200 places in the rankings. That's a hell of an achievement, isn't it?

ALASTAIR GRAY: Thank you very much. Yeah, I'm very happy with how I played. I'm more happy about how I dealt with the occasion. First match at Wimbledon. There's a lot of pressure, a lot of things going on, a lot of tension. I thought I handled everything very well.

Some silly stuff at the beginning of the match. Didn't have the right bottles. Had to change the bottles. My hat logo was too big, so I had to change my hat. I double-faulted on the first point. It was all going wrong at the beginning, but I managed to deal with it well.

Yeah, obviously to finish the third set 7-6, yeah, very happy to come through that, very happy.

Q. There was a time when Brits coming to Wimbledon would slightly be like rabbits in the headlights. Now I don't know whether you're feeding off each other, but it just seems there's a real belief amongst this group.

ALASTAIR GRAY: Yeah, you're 100% right. I think Jack won. I don't know how Liam is doing right now. Ryan won earlier. Ryan has been doing amazing the whole grass season.

I think we're all spurring each other on. Them doing well creates belief in the other Brits that they can do it, too. We're all just pushing each other higher and higher right now. It's so great to see.

Yeah, maybe it hasn't been like that in the past. But I think right now British tennis is looking in good shape, yeah.

Q. You don't go out on court maybe worried about losing, it's more about being excited about the possibilities of winning.

ALASTAIR GRAY: Yeah, yeah. I think it's kind of how you approach the match, isn't it? You don't want to lose or you want to win. I think we're all just hungry to win. I think that's because we have some good people supporting us in the LTA, Mark Taylor, mine and Peniston's coach.

The number one goal for us was to go out and enjoy the experience, to just get our game out on the court, see what happens. We know we have the game to win, so it's about going taking it and winning it. It's not about worrying about all the pressures and the tension and stuff like that.

Yeah, I think you're right, I think we're all just going out and playing very free, which is dangerous. I think that's one of the reasons why we're doing so well.

Q. I don't know if you're someone that looks at the draw, but do you know who you're playing next?

ALASTAIR GRAY: I think I play Taylor Fritz.

Q. Jack beat him at Queen's.

ALASTAIR GRAY: Jack beat him at Queen's, that's right. Yeah.

Q. I don't know whether you would be someone who would go and maybe sidle up to Jack on a practice court and ask him how he did it?

ALASTAIR GRAY: Yeah, I'm good friends with Jack. We went to the same school. Known him since I was 11 or 12, whatever. We're very tight, very close.

Yeah, I'll definitely ask him (smiling).

Q. The idea of playing the No. 11 seed, as well.

ALASTAIR GRAY: Is he No. 11 seed, is he? Nice (smiling).

Q. Sorry.

ALASTAIR GRAY: Yeah.

Q. It's a pretty big deal. On a big court maybe, as well.

ALASTAIR GRAY: I think he won Eastbourne last week, didn't he?

Q. Yes.

ALASTAIR GRAY: He's obviously playing good.

I'm excited, yeah. Looking forward to it, everything about it.

Q. The idea of two of you 11 years old at school together, at what point did you start to realize you could actually make a living out of this, become professionals? Was that something you talked about when you were quite young?

ALASTAIR GRAY: I'm the same age as Jack's brother, Ben Draper. Jack is a little bit younger than me. I knew him, but obviously when I'm 11 and he would have been 8 or something, there's actually quite a big difference.

It wouldn't have been till later on that we became friends or buddies, whatever. I always knew him and stuff.

Jack has always had massive potential I think from a young age. I think everyone has kind of seen him as doing amazing, which he is doing amazing.

At what stage? Yeah, I mean, I know Jack actually played Tseng in the final of the junior Wimbledon. I played Felix in the first round, Felix Auger-Aliassime, in my junior Wimbledon in 2016.

I suppose it would have been different stages for Jack and myself. Jack was better earlier. I think for me coming out of college, you know, started to progress a little bit later. But I've always wanted to do it. It's always been in my mind, I've always had the belief that I can do it.

At what stage? I would say probably my last year juniors, 2016, I was thinking, Right, I can do this.

Q. What school was that?

ALASTAIR GRAY: Parkside in Cobham.

Q. Near Chelsea Training Ground?

ALASTAIR GRAY: Literally right next to it.

Q. Fancy being a footballer?

ALASTAIR GRAY: Yeah, I don't know. Another friend, Cameron McGeehan, trained there all the time. We would go and watch his practices sometimes, which is cool.

I like tennis a lot. I think it's the best sport personally. I know I'm biased.

Q. You and Ryan have both won in the singles. How much of a priority is the doubles going to be?

ALASTAIR GRAY: I mean, we're going to try to win the doubles match. That's basically what we're going to do. I'm really looking forward to playing. I love playing doubles with Ryan. We're going to have good fun out there. When we step on the court, we're going to try and win. That's 100%.

Q. Have you practiced match?

ALASTAIR GRAY: Doubles?

Q. Yes.

ALASTAIR GRAY: We played at Surbiton together, then we played at Nottingham, as well. But to be honest, most of our practices are around singles, yeah.