AUSTRALIAN OPEN

January 19, 2023

Alexei Popyrin

Press Conference

A. POPYRIN/T. Fritz

6-7, 7-6, 6-4, 6-7, 6-2

THE MODERATOR: Alexei, congratulations. Another breathtaking match. Very emotional at the end of the match. Can you share a little bit with us about your emotions there.

ALEXEI POPYRIN: Yeah, just to have the crowd chanting your name, playing a match like that, winning against a player like Taylor, for me it was really, really big, really emotional, especially after the year I had last year. I think everybody knows the year I had last year. I won as many matches this month as I had on the tour last year.

For me it was really emotional coming through that match, having the crowd chanting your name. Yeah, I'll never forget it (smiling).

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. What has changed for you? What do you think has changed in such a hurry to win five out of 22 matches last year to suddenly beating Taylor Fritz?

ALEXEI POPYRIN: Not much, to be honest (smiling). Just the work. Just the work that we put on behind the scenes.

Not saying that I didn't work last year, but I was working, I was trying to get out of the rut that I was in. Just the type of work, just the type of environment I have in my team right now, in my camp, with all the guys that are there. Also I added a nutritionist, who might be helping with the recovery.

No, honestly I think it's just everybody. I have a coach, two coaches: X and Fernando. Fernando was with me all of last year. He stuck with me throughout the tough times. He's there right now in Dubai back at home. Just all emotional and stuff.

For me, it's to have the right people around me all the time, the people who love me, and I love them back. That's what we have right now as a team. Yeah, we're going to stick by it and keep pushing.

Q. Mentally more than anything?

ALEXEI POPYRIN: I think it's everything. Just the type of work. Mentally a little bit. We've been working really, really hard also physically. But I think, yeah, you're right, it's mostly mental. Just knowing that I went through last year, and it wasn't great, and knowing that I came through it all right.

I still have my family. I still have my girlfriend. I still love everybody around me, and they love me back equally. That for me is the most important thing.

Just found out that tennis is probably not my whole world. Still have family around me. Like I said, just to keep working at it and keep pushing. That's what I did.

Q. Talk to us about the influence of Xavier in your team. Seems to have been riding the waves with you with his emotions. What has he actually brought to your game?

ALEXEI POPYRIN: Yeah, like I said on the post-match interview, it felt like it was me and X playing against Taylor. We were so mentally locked in, both of us. I was looking at him, he was looking at me all the time. We had eye contact after every point. I knew what he was thinking. He knew what I was thinking. We were in it together.

That's not something you get with every single coach. You have to have a really special connection, a special bond that we've kind of built up since I've known him. I've only known him since October. We built it up super, super quickly. I've known him longer, but I've only had him on since October.

We have built that relationship up really quickly. The whole team, to be honest, also. We all have that connection.

Yeah, like I said, we're going to keep pushing.

Q. A lot is made of the home slam advantage. How important was the crowd during the match?

ALEXEI POPYRIN: Yeah, during the match, they were amazing. I get goose bumps just thinking about it, honestly. They really helped me through the tough times, especially in that fourth set tiebreak. I came out, they were equally as pumped that we were going to five sets. Probably not me, I wasn't too happy we were going five sets. They were just equally as energetic and equally as motivating. I couldn't have done it without them.

Q. You looked a bit teary eyed right at the end, in a good way clearly. Obviously Fritz is ranked about a hundred places higher than you are. You have to go into a match believing you can win. At what point tonight did you actually think you were going to do it?

ALEXEI POPYRIN: From the start, honestly. I have that confidence going into every match. I think I have the game to beat the guys at the top. Done that twice already this year. Beat two top-10 guys. For me it's very important going into that match knowing I have that confidence, knowing I have the game to beat them, which I truly believe that I do.

I think the first set kind of calmed my nerves, even though I lost it. I took him to a tiebreak. I knew I was holding my serve quite easily. I was just looking forward to that second set and coming out there and winning that second set, which I did.

Q. Will that mindset stay if you play Novak in the later rounds?

ALEXEI POPYRIN: Yeah, yeah. I think it's really important to have that in your mental game, to know it, to go out there and know you can beat anybody.

Look, I'm not saying I'm going to beat Novak. He's the best player in the world. I'm probably going to go out there and lose 3, 3 and 3. I go into every match believing I can win because I do have the game to beat these guys at the top, I do have the ability to do that.

Q. What do you make of your next opponent, the way the draw sort of opened up a bit?

ALEXEI POPYRIN: I only found out that I was playing Ben in my post-match interview on court. I know that he's a big lefty, big serve, big from the back, likes to come forward, has a huge game. Is really up-and-coming with so much confidence. Those are tough players to play: youngsters with so much confidence who have not been on the tour much, who came out honestly at the back end of last year going from, I don't know, I think unranked to top hundred.

He's a really good player and he's in the third round already this year in his probably first AO. It's going to be really tough. I'm not going into it lighthearted or cocky or anything like that. I'm going into it ready to battle.

Q. You said on court that you want to go all the way now. Is that a legitimate thing? You think you can go?

ALEXEI POPYRIN: I'm going to take it one match at a time. But, yeah, I think going into every tournament, you want to go all the way.

For me, with the way I'm playing now, I think I have a good chance to win the next round. That's all that I'm looking towards, is the next round. I'm not looking forward. I don't know who I play in the fourth round, quarterfinals, semifinals. For me, the third round is the key.

Q. On the mindset of going into every match believing you can win. You said in Adelaide you want these top-10 wins, like against Felix, just to become the norm. How significant is that to back it up a couple weeks after you say something like that?

ALEXEI POPYRIN: I think it's huge. I knew that I have the game, like I said, to beat them. It's huge to back up talk. I think it's important to back up talk. I wouldn't have been saying it last year, for example. I wouldn't have been claiming that I can beat these top-10 guys.

Yeah, for me it's simple, not just to put stuff out there and not back it up. It's really important for me to back up my word. That's what I did.

Hopefully I'll continue doing it. Don't want to jinx it, though, so touch wood.