OMNIUM BANQUE NATIONALE

August 12, 2022

Hubert Hurkacz

Press Conference

H. HURKACZ/N. Kyrgios

7-6, 6-7, 6-1

THE MODERATOR: Great match today. You have beaten him the last couple months. How did you feel today?

HUBERT HURKACZ: Yeah, definitely today was a really tough match. I mean, Nick has been playing really unbelievable throughout the past few months. Battling against him, it's very challenging, but it's also fun.

It was definitely a good match.

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. Despite the fact it was a three-set match, it didn't really seem for you, looking at the match, that you had trouble winning points and everything. What do you think was the key for you in the match to find a way to beat a guy like that?

HUBERT HURKACZ: It's good it looked this way (smiling).

Definitely Nick is super opponent. He can make every single shot. He doesn't really have that many weaknesses, if any.

I was just trying to serve good and stay aggressive.

Q. Depending on the result of the next quarterfinal, you might play against local favorite, Felix Auger-Aliassime, one of your close friends I think. You won a doubles title together. Does it change anything in your preparation to face up against somebody you know very well, a friend of yours?

HUBERT HURKACZ: I mean, obviously I know Felix really well. He's a really great guy, amazing guy. Very happy for him how well he's playing, especially this year.

We had some close battles. He won most of them (smiling). But, you know, I just try to prepare as good as I can for each single match.

Q. This is two wins in a row over Kyrgios. You could make the argument that he is the in-form player right now. Does this give you better confidence going into the rest of the hard court season and the US Open?

HUBERT HURKACZ: Yeah, I mean, definitely. It shows me that I can really bring super high level and definitely motivates me to keep pushing.

Q. Nick has been almost unstoppable the last few months. You've beaten him twice. It seems that you can read him better than other players. Is that something that you feel also?

HUBERT HURKACZ: Probably not (laughter).

No, I mean, I think I have a pretty good serve, and I was serving well in those two matches. That definitely helped me to stay with him in the game.

Q. The first set tiebreaker probably came down to a double-fault. The second tiebreaker came down to the let cord that he got that trickled over the net. You were a bit upset about it afterwards. What did you tell yourself going into the third? Such slim margins for the first two sets.

HUBERT HURKACZ: I was confident in my serve. I was just trying to find opportunity, just go for it when I have a chance. That was it, what I was thinking during the break.

Q. You said Kyrgios is a very tricky opponent. He was serving really quickly between the points. How did you adjust to that?

HUBERT HURKACZ: I mean, just trying to be ready quick. I mean, I knew he's going to do it, and I was ready for it. That wasn't a surprise.

Thanks so much, guys. Thank you. See you.