MIAMI OPEN PRESENTED BY ITAú

March 29, 2023

Christopher Eubanks

Mixed Zone

C. EUBANKS/A. Mannarino

7-6, 7-6

Q. Chris, how does it feel?

CHRISTOPHER EUBANKS: It feels good. Feels good. Just like yesterday feels good, this feels great. I don't know. It's just something about all of the delays and the stopping and starting and the warming up and cooling down and warming up, it makes a match like this even sweeter.

My first Masters 1000 quarterfinal is really, really special. No, it feels great. I'm feeling good right now.

Q. When you got over here, you said there is not going to be any crying this time. How different does this one feel? You're still going at such a big event?

CHRISTOPHER EUBANKS: Yeah, last night was so many different emotions just because being down in the breaker, my mind had kind of already floated to the idea of a third set. So to be able to come back and win it, it was just a lot. It was a lot saving, was it five set points and to be able to come back, it was more just shock that I actually won the match.

Then to find out afterwards that that match put me in the top 100, that's when the emotion came out. It was about five years since I turned pro, and honestly, like the first year of my career I thought, you know, I would get to the top 100 a little bit quicker. Got to 150 in about a year. I thought it's gonna come. Just didn't happen that way. Then COVID happens, have to kind of sit down for a year. It's a lot.

Today feels a lot more like I'm here, trust it, I'm playing well. Let's just see how long we can keep this thing going.

Q. What was the strategy for tonight? You guys were hitting a lot of risky balls on the line and stuff.

CHRISTOPHER EUBANKS: Yeah, I mean, Adrian is an established veteran, he's so crafty, beaten some of the best players in the world. Thought process for me was just to go out there and hold serve. That's the only thing I can really control, holding serve and doing what I feel like I'm supposed to do.

After that, it's just kind of playing on feel, kind of figure it out. He's so good with his hands and absorbing pace. I hit the ball big, so it's a little bit risky for me to even give a guy like that pace.

You know, I think I was able to come up with the goods when I needed and redirecting some balls. Some of the balls I changed direction on. I have no idea. My eyes were closed. I'm going to be honest with you. They went in, went in at the right time. Now here I am in the quarterfinals.

Q. That serve was really firing tonight, yeah?

CHRISTOPHER EUBANKS: It was good. Typically I prefer a little bit livelier conditions, but I think tonight with the stopping and starting, was really, really pleased with how I was able to serve, all things considered, just because it's riskier player, stopping and starting could easily come out of a rain delay and have a slow start. Get off to a slow start, get broken early, have some loose errors.

So to not have those coming out of these rain delays and find my rhythm is really, really good. I think it's a testament to a lot of the hard work and the professionalism that I have been trying to get better at over the past few months.

Q. One of those serves you served and you got it in and you started shaking your legs. Was that...

CHRISTOPHER EUBANKS: No, that serve was called out. It was out, but it was a serve and I think it was a let actually. It was a let, and I kind of -- I thought it was a let but it was a late call so it kind of, a little bit if I could deflate it, Oh, man, I thought I had that ace.

That's all that was. It wasn't really anything else, I would say.

Q. (Off mic.)

CHRISTOPHER EUBANKS: I'm still not checking it. I couldn't help it last night. Twitter was going -- it was all over my Twitter feed. I couldn't really help it.

I have no idea where I stand. I'm committed to not checking that app until the tournament is over, whenever that is. We cross that bridge when we get there. I have got to be honest, I'm looking forward to checking it pretty soon. Well, not too soon, but whenever the tournament is over it's going to be a fun thing to be able to open it up and see exactly where I stand.

Q. You had very little sleep? How many hours did you get? What was it like to try to get ready for this?

CHRISTOPHER EUBANKS: Yeah, I think I went to sleep around 1:15-ish. Woke up at around 4:00. Stayed up for maybe like a couple hours. First 30 minutes, I'm like, not gonna check my phone. I've done that mistake a few times. Not gonna check the phone.

After about 30 minutes, I said, All right, I need something. Checked my phone a little bit. Went to sleep around 6:00, woke up at 8:00. That was pretty much it. About five hours, I think.

During first delay had a couple espressos and was really, really wired for a little bit, and then after the next rain delay kind of crashed for a little bit. All in all just kind of be able to get going when I needed to, pretty impressive. To be honest, I'm tired. I'm very, very tired right now.

Q. (Question about nerves.)

CHRISTOPHER EUBANKS: They are less. I went out there today feeling, Let's just go out there and play tennis, let's go out here and have fun. This week has already been a dream come true. Let's go out here and play as well as I can play, and I'm more than happy to live with the results as long as I can go out and try to execute as well as I can and really have no regrets about how I played.

Q. You had Chad Johnson here, Jamie Foxx on social media.

CHRISTOPHER EUBANKS: It's amazing, man. It's really, really cool. I have known Foxx for a few years now, two, three years now, and he's become really, really close friend, someone I can call if I just want to talk through life a little bit.

Chad and I actually connected for the first time two, three weeks ago. He posted a video playing tennis. We had DM'd in the past, so when he posted the video I commented saying, Hey, man, that looks pretty good. He commented back saying, I would love to get on the court with you.

I immediately shot him a DM. I said I'm going to be down in Miami for the Miami Open. If you want to come out, I see about getting you a credential. Able to do that. And he's such an avid sports fan. He loves following tennis. He was super excited to be able to meet Carlitos today. Got to meet Tommy the other day. He's an all-around sports junky. It was really cool for him to be able to come out.

Stuck through one or two rain delays, I don't know exactly. I think after that last one he kind of had to get out of here. Completely understandable.

No, it's been really cool to see the outpouring of support. DJ D-Nice, another person who reached out and I got to meet. It's been really, really cool.

Q. (Off mic.)

CHRISTOPHER EUBANKS: Yeah, Donald sent me a text. He sent me a text saying congrats, man, it's all part of the journey. I made sure to tell him there is no way in the world I would be here without him and his family. I think he always knows that. He knows how important they have been to my career. Yeah, I got to talk to him, which is pretty cool.