CITI OPEN

August 5, 2022

Andrey Rublev

Press Conference

A. RUBLEV/J.J. Wolf

6-2, 6-3

THE MODERATOR: Not easy for you, two matches today, and you won both. Definitely feeling tired but also happy, too?

ANDREY RUBLEV: Of course I'm happy to be for second time in semifinal at Washington. Obviously I'm happy, and I want to do my best tomorrow to see if I can go farther.

So, yeah, we'll see. It's a long day. It's really late. Waiting for my dinner (smiling).

THE MODERATOR: Questions.

Q. I'm not sure if you have a long history of this, but as far as playing two matches today and then having to play again tomorrow, can you think back, have you done that? If so, how have you maybe done that the following day or felt the next day after two matches like that?

ANDREY RUBLEV: Yeah, I have done this exactly here in 2018 and today again. I mean, depends the matches that you had. I think in my case I was really lucky that I didn't spend much time on court.

Compare, for example, Nishioka who play only one match, and he spent 3 hours 30. So rather than to spend two matches like me than one match like him today.

Yeah, it's part of the sport. I think that's the fun thing about it, that you don't know what to expect. Suddenly you will have two matches in one day. Then you have to play at this time, but because the matches, I don't know, gets long, long, long, you delay and delay and you start really late, and it's like you cannot adjust, I think. It's just the way it is.

Q. What is the biggest challenge on a day like this? A noon start, and then in the end you are playing until past 10:00 p.m.

ANDREY RUBLEV: I don't know. The challenge, I think the heat was, in the beginning, that was super hot. But then was just -- at night it's nice. I don't know. If the light on center court will be even lighter will be much better. But the rest, yeah, night is comfortable to play.

Q. Could you speak about the contrast in your opponents today? What was required by Cressy and what was required by Wolf?

ANDREY RUBLEV: Obviously the serve of Cressy is something unreal. He serves two first serves, which I have never seen something like that in my life. And even if I saw something similar, at least there was like half in, half double faults, and he didn't even do much double faults.

But yeah, as soon as you make return -- I mean, today the game was only about to return on first shot, to make it first shot. And then I think in all match we don't have really maybe only couple of rallies.

Of course obviously after a match like that, when you go to play against player like J.J. who play rallies, who runs, and in the beginning, the first game for me was like, Wow, we hit more than three shots, and the speed is quite high.

I forgot how this feeling when you play rallies, because today, if you pass two balls, the point was done or he was making winner or mistake, or I was making winner or mistake, so was not -- you don't even think about.

And here you have to think like, okay, he gonna catch here what I have to play next. It took me maybe couple of games to adjust again.

Q. Do you mind telling us how you spent the day, the many, many hours between? Do you go back to your hotel? Do you play Ping-Pong? Do you read or nap?

ANDREY RUBLEV: Today, after the match, what I did... I finished the match, I went shower, then I went physio to have a stretch, and then I went lunch.

I didn't eat healthy. I eat some, yeah, some sushi with the sauce and then coffee with a Pepsi. Then I fell asleep. I wake up when was rain. I took one more coffee (smiling). Then I was waiting for the match.