ROLEX MONTE-CARLO MASTERS

April 14, 2023

Andrey Rublev

Press Conference

A. RUBLEV/J.L. Struff

6-1, 7-6

THE MODERATOR: Questions in English.

Q. Just your thoughts about your match today. Very good first set.

ANDREY RUBLEV: I think I played really well today. Yeah, the first set I was able to keep control of my emotions, and then the second set was a bit different because Struff, he start to play a bit more aggressive, and I also was playing really well.

I had a lot of opportunities to break him, but then I start to show emotions, and in the end, the match become more equal. Yeah, and then the tiebreak is lottery. You never know who's gonna win. Then today I was a bit more lucky.

Q. You say it's lottery, but right now you won, if I'm not wrong, the 10 last tiebreakers you played, and the first of the 10 was in the fifth in Australia. Do you still think it's lottery, or do you think it might be...

ANDREY RUBLEV: I don't know. I went few times to casino to see the roulette, and sometimes they were 10 times black also in a row (smiling). You think, how is possible? Because it's 50/50, and there was 10 times sometimes in a row (smiling).

So I don't know. I will lose so many tiebreaks and I will win also so many tiebreaks in the future.

Q. You're talking about emotion. How can it come that you play so well the first set and just in one minute, because of one mistake or something else, you go on the dark side?

ANDREY RUBLEV: Too many thoughts in the head. You start to think about victory. You start to think that you're playing so good, so well, everything is under control, and you want to have this control nonstop.

As soon as, yeah, something little one is not working and you feel that I have the victory but is not yet there, you start to stress, you know.

Q. Is Mr. 500 ready to take this Masters?

ANDREY RUBLEV: No, I don't know (smiling). I'm just not even thinking this way. No, no chance. Just match by match.

Q. And is Andrey Rublev ready to defend the title of Serbia Open?

ANDREY RUBLEV: This is even too early to talk, because I didn't finish this tournament.

Q. Are you coming? Are you playing?

ANDREY RUBLEV: I'm playing. Of course I confirm. So we'll see. I hope at least I will be able to win some matches there, at least one. I'm on a bye, so if I win one match I will be already in quarters. So we'll see if I can make it (smiling).

Q. Can you tell me what was your reaction when you heard that Musetti beat Djokovic, and if you were very much surprised? What do you think about that match if you saw it?

ANDREY RUBLEV: I saw the match. Not all, but the third set I saw. I mean, I can only say bravo to Musetti, because to beat Novak, you need to have level to beat him.

I don't know, both feeling. In the same time I was not surprised, because sometimes happens to Novak those things, like also the same, when I played him last year final in Serbia, that I won the match and I won 6-0 in the third, which is basically impossible happen somewhere else. Sometimes it happens.

But then when he goes to play slams or next Masters after first one on clay, because it's tough, you don't have much time, everyone adapt different. But then with the time, with a few more weeks, I don't know, or Rome or Madrid or Roland Garros, it will be also a completely different Djokovic.

But for Musetti, I'm only happy because he played amazing match and he deserve it.

Q. Since we met in Barcelona, I'd like to know how your clay preparations were and where and also a word on your new physio, which is a countryman of mine.

ANDREY RUBLEV: I had couple of days of preparation with my team in Barcelona, and then we came here on Thursday. So I guess I had, what, three days, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday flight, so yeah, not even a week in one place of preparation.

So it was three days, then here couple of days, and on Sunday I was playing already doubles. Not much time.

And the physio, he's here with me and we are doing, yeah, I hope he will do most of the tournaments, because now he was Doha, Dubai, Indian Wells, Miami, Monte-Carlo, and then he will go Madrid, Rome, Roland Garros. Everything is good, albeit slow motion, but he's a good physio.

Q. Could you just talk a little bit about Ivan Gakhov? We didn't know him before this week, but you knew him because he told us that you helped him a lot. Can you tell us how you helped him?

ANDREY RUBLEV: I helped nothing, just to give him some stuff, Nike stuff. That's it. But, yeah, we know each other since we were kids, juniors, because he's one year older than me. So we used to play local tournaments together, some tennis, Europe tournaments together. We played even doubles together in some tournaments.

And that's it. Then sometimes, yeah, he was texting me if I have any clothes that I can give him, and I give him a few (smiling).

Q. What surprise would it be for you to play now Taylor Fritz? Because he's leading right now. Sometimes on clay it looks like he doesn't move well.

ANDREY RUBLEV: Yeah, but then he shoot bomba, bomba, serve 220, and he don't need to move (smiling). That's why it's tough to play against him, because if he see a little bit, he hits straightaway.

He make now, last year and a half he make most of them, the balls. Before was 50/50. Sometimes he could play amazing match, sometimes he could do mistakes. Now looks like he's not missing at all.

I don't know. I will be not surprised because I know he's really tough player and it's really tough to beat him. Doesn't matter the surface, because he go there, serve 220, and he hit forehand, and then when he return he step in and he go full power.

Doesn't matter the surface. It's tough. You know, when the guy return full power to you, you need couple of shots to start the rally, because if he returns well, you're in danger.