AUSTRALIAN OPEN

January 20, 2023

Cameron Norrie

Press Conference

J. LEHECKA/C. Norrie

6-7, 6-3, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4

THE MODERATOR: Welcome to the press conference of Cameron Norrie. A tough battle out there, Cam. Not the result you were hoping for probably, but what can you take from the match and look forward?

CAMERON NORRIE: Yeah, I think at the end of the day he played better than me. He won more big points than me, started all the sets much better than me.

So if you are going to do that, he deserved to win. So he was too good in the end. But I fought as hard as I can. Pretty disappointed with that.

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. What was the issue with medical...

CAMERON NORRIE: Yeah, obviously been playing a lot. Yeah, we've been doing some stuff to try work on it, but I don't think it's anything significant. I just wanted to make sure it wasn't anything too bad. Just double-check that and take an anti-inflammatory to give myself the best chance so I can focus on the tennis.

It didn't really affect the match too much. Obviously played a lot, and I thing it's pretty normal to have niggles here and there, but I think nothing serious.

Q. What didn't feel right today? It's quite unusual for you to sort of leak that amount of errors.

CAMERON NORRIE: I don't think I've been feeling the ball too well the whole tournament. Obviously coming into the tournament, it's maybe my best level. Last week was great. And United Cup was some of the best level that I've played in a while. It was a great start to the year. And I think, yeah, I wasn't really feeling the ball that well since the start of the tournament. Yeah, there was too many lapses in concentration.

Like I said, the way I started sets and started the match was not where it should be. Yeah, I gave him too much today, and he was, like I said, more solid than me. He was more aggressive than me and probably hit more winners and probably less unforced errors.

It was pretty straightforward. If you're going to do that, you're just going to win the match.

Q. How do you feel about your preparation coming in here? Are you happy with it?

CAMERON NORRIE: It's the best preparation I've ever had to play matches. The best start to the year I've ever had. To play in the final in Auckland, and I came in here with a load of confidence, and I think it's perfect to play matches before then.

I played unbelievable in Hong Kong as well over Christmas time, so I really enjoyed that. It was perfect preparation for me.

Maybe I just peaked a little bit too early in United Cup. But now I think I came in here and gave myself the best chance. I think I didn't play a very good match, and I almost won the match in five sets.

So I think at the end of the day I just need to keep getting better and work on a few lapses in concentration and keep working as hard as I can. I feel like my level, my tennis is still on an upward trajectory. So, yeah, it was a great start to the year. I'm just disappointed with the result obviously today.

Yeah, all credit to Jiri. He played well in the big moments, and he served a lot better than me and returned really well in the fourth and the fifth. Yeah, a lot of positives to take from the whole start of the year.

Q. Just wondering, Cam, I'm only supposing this, but for you playing at Auckland, we watched on TV and the speech you made. It obviously means quite a lot to you playing there. It's a couple of time zones away. You have friends and family there and stuff. I'm just wondering if that's sort of the ideal place to play the week before a slam because there's more focus on you there and a more demanding week than a lot of players would have before a Grand Slam tournament.

CAMERON NORRIE: Yeah, I think it was great. You know, it was a great week. I really enjoyed it, and I hopefully inspired some juniors there. Obviously playing some junior tennis there. I thought it was amazing.

Obviously I could have won the title, 4-1 up in the third. Richard played better than me. I really loved playing the tournament, and it was great preparation to play the matches.

I didn't know I was going to play so well in United Cup. Yeah, I was feeling really good, and I had some really good level. I don't think I would change my decision even though with the result today. I still think with the way I played, I still could have won today regardless of if I played Auckland or not.

If you look at Wimbledon as well, I played Eastbourne and really good there and lost in the quarterfinals to Cressy who was better, and then went on to make semis.

Yeah, I'll have to pick and choose some 250s I think this year. But ultimately I want to be playing my best tennis in the big events, and I think I gave myself the best chance.

Yeah, it's just disappointing to lose today, but I think I really enjoyed playing in Auckland, and I was so close to getting the title there.

Q. You said you weren't feeling the ball, and the actual ball has gotten quite a bit of criticism from some players about fluffing up too early. I'm just curious how you feel about that, especially with someone with a spinny forehand?

CAMERON NORRIE: For me I'm not too concerned about the ball. I play with anything. I think it's going to be even more tough in Colombia in a couple of weeks with playing with, like, a pressureless ball. I'll take playing with this one every day of the week compared to that one in a couple of weeks.

But for me it can be good and bad. You know, my forehand is spinny, but my backhand is really flat. There's some positives and negatives. But I'm never really looking at the ball too much. It was great for me in United Cup, great in Auckland, and great here.

They're pretty quick the first couple of games, and then they wear out. Especially on the stadium courts, they're a little bit slower, and they take the bounce a bit more.

But on the outside courts when I played Lestienne, it was pretty quick, even in a night match. For me it's always better having bouncier balls, but I still played well with anything, I think.

Q. It was pretty breezy out there. Do you think that had an effect as well? Obviously, both of you maybe missed timing a little bit sometimes.

CAMERON NORRIE: Yeah, I usually don't mind the wind so much, and I can play well, and it doesn't affect me too much. I don't think that was the issue.

Yeah, it's going to happen. It's going to be swirly, especially on those stadium courts. But no, I think at the end of the day, like I said, he played better than me in the bigger moments, more aggressive. Hit his spots on the serve, and I didn't.

Yeah, there were some lapses in concentration. But at the end of the day, he won the match, I lost. It's nothing more. The conditions were great. It's a great day compared to the match I played in the second round. It was cold. It was even more windy.

So, no, it was a great day for the fans and for me it was perfect conditions. It was just he was better than me.

Q. Back on that point, you've done a lot of flying since you finished Paris and finished the season. Mexico, Middle East, the Far East and obviously Oceania. Is there not a part of you that thinks you should have cut that down and spent more time resting or in one location rather than sort of jet-setting around in various places?

CAMERON NORRIE: Yeah, I think it was a lot of fun playing in those events and getting the matches. I wanted to play where the best players in the world were playing. Daniil was playing there, and Fritz was going to Hong Kong. I wanted to play with the best in the world. Alcaraz was in Abu Dhabi. I think I gave myself the best preparation. It's the best start of the year that I've had.

But, no, I had a really good pre-season, maybe one of the best ones I've ever had playing the matches and playing with the best players in the word to get ready for this tournament.

Yeah, it's a lot of flights, but it's the nature of our life. Yeah, it was nothing too crazy. I've taken more flights before that, and we're going to have to fly a lot with our job. But for me it was great. I really enjoyed those events, and I got the best preparation that I could to play well here.

Q. Last night it's kind of easy to forget that you were on until half-one the previous night. I'm just wondering when you got to bed and how you felt when you woke up.

CAMERON NORRIE: It was amazing watching Andy yesterday. Even thinking today I was down 4-1 in the first, and I was, like, this is nothing compared to what he came back from yesterday, which was really cool to see. Obviously, I didn't stay up last night and watch that.

Yeah, it can be tough to get to sleep after those matches. I even saw Andy here this morning pretty early still. Yeah, I think I don't really look at the clock, but it was maybe 3:30, 4:00. But obviously with all the adrenaline from the match and everything, it's tough.

For me I had a lot of time. I had the day off yesterday to practice, and I played a reasonable time today. So, yeah, it can be tough.

Andy was finishing at a ridiculous hour. It can be brutal for him. It's going to be a tough turnaround for him. He looks ready, and he is moving well. If anyone can do it, he can keep going.