NEXT GEN ATP FINALS

November 12, 2022

Brandon Nakashima

Press Conference

B. NAKASHIMA/J. Lehecka

4-3, 4-3, 4-2

Q. Well done. Congratulations. You played 16, you won 16 tiebreaks. How do you explain that? You played incredibly solid. You never had fear.

BRANDON NAKASHIMA: Well, thank you. I think in those pressure situations in those tiebreaks I think it all comes downward to your mental game. Every player out here can hit the ball well and has some big weapons.

So for me it's just about staying calm in those moments. Of course there's going to be some nerves sometimes, but you just try to manage as best as possible. I think in those pressure situations I've been pretty good this year.

Q. This is a special tournament of course for young players because it kind of projects them in different dimensions. We have seen that with Alcaraz, Tsitsipas, Sinner. So what do you expect? What's next for you?

BRANDON NAKASHIMA: Yeah, I think this tournament is great. Especially the ATP organizing it, the Italian Federation. I think it's great that all the young up and coming players come together and compete in a nice, fun format.

I think it really exposes the younger generation as well with the media and everything. So I think this tournament, it's a great stepping stone for the ATP Tour.

Yeah, that I'm mixed with all the past champions I think it's a great achievement. I'm just going to keep working hard and look forward to next year.

Q. The prize money is very generous. I was wondering if you are going to splurge on something. Do you have a dream car or fun jewelry or stuff?

BRANDON NAKASHIMA: I don't know yet. I haven't really thought about it too much. Of course it is generous prize money here from the ATP. I'm super thankful for that.

We'll see in the next few days, next few weeks if I have any big purchases or not.

Q. (Question about Brandon's coach and physio.)

BRANDON NAKASHIMA: Yeah, I think I have a great team with me here. Eduardo has been great this past year. He's kind of brought us all together with Franco and also with the fitness and physio. So I'm super thankful for all of them. They work so hard for me and just to be able to share this moment with all of them, the last tournament of the year, I think it's super special and we're just going to keep working hard for next year.

Q. How would you summarize your season as a whole? You won the title in San Diego. How would you reflect on the past 12 months?

BRANDON NAKASHIMA: Yeah, I think it's been a great season for me. I've definitely learned a lot with every match, with every tournament.

Of course at the beginning of the year I had some goals. To win my first ATP title and to be able to do it in San Diego was super special a couple months ago. To finish off the year here winning the title at Next Gen is super special.

I think the whole year for me has been very consistent. I've had such great memories both on and off the court. I'm super thankful for everyone that's been a part of it.

Q. All the guys here have success on the Challenger Tour sort of at an early stage of their career. How important has the Challenger Tour been in your sort of journey up and to this point?

BRANDON NAKASHIMA: Yeah, it's been super important. I think for any player that's trying to make it on the pro tour I think it's a great stepping stone to get all those Challenger matches. The level I think is super high. I think it's a good building block to win those Challengers and then to graduate on to the ATP tournaments.

I think it's super special. I did it myself as well. So I think for any player it's a good stepping stone.

Q. You beat Dimitrov at the US Open on hard court. You beat Shapovalov on grass court. You made third round in Roland Garros on clay. This court is incredibly. So what is the court that you like the best? And where would you like to play the match of your dreams?

BRANDON NAKASHIMA: Oh, I mean, this past year I've gotten used to playing on every surface out there. I think for me growing up I've always played on the hardcourts. I think the faster surface certainly suits me, suits my game really well.

So playing here I think was really helpful for my game. With my team and my coaches we're just trying to get that exposure to play on all the surfaces and get comfortable with all the different game styles out there.

Q. Would you like to see more of this format on the tour and would you say it's more enjoyable for watching?

BRANDON NAKASHIMA: Yeah, I would definitely say it's more exciting for the fans. There's definitely a lot of pressure points, big moments out there. The sets go by pretty quick.

But for me personally I kind of prefer the regular format that's on the ATP Tour just because it gives you more time to come back in sets, to get some rhythm.

This format goes by really quick. If you're not on your game right away, you could be down a set or down a couple sets.

But, no, I think it's a fun format for this tournament for the younger players just to try out. I think the ATP's done a good job trying out these new rules here and eventually having some of them on the ATP Tour.