MUTUA MADRID OPEN

May 7, 2023

Jan-Lennard Struff

Press Conference

C. ALCARAZ/J.L. Struff

6-4, 3-6, 6-3

THE MODERATOR: Questions for Jan-Lennard.

Q. Congratulations for this great tournament. What an incredible story of perseverance and second chances. Do you think this tournament will mark a turning point in your career?

JAN-LENNARD STRUFF: Yeah, thank you, first of all. Yeah, it's been incredible journey from Lucky Loser to be in the final, runner-up here.

Yeah, hope so that it gives me a lot of push for the next weeks and months. Was a best-career achievement so far. Yeah, hope it pushed me a lot.

Q. The match was quite steady, let's say, but perhaps some more first serves? But in any case, you remind us of Stefan Edberg coming to the net. It was your Wimbledon match, blah, blah?

JAN-LENNARD STRUFF: Yeah, I saw first set was just like 40% inside the field. So I lost the set 6-4. Didn't play a first good game in the match, I would say.

At 5-4, Love-40, still chances to be there. I left a bit of chances in the first set, I would just say. There was a chance to go 5-All or even win the set.

But second was amazing. I played very well. And third I had first breakpoint, as well. Yeah, but played it very close out, and from the point he broke me, he broke me very well to 3-1. Was a great game from him.

He was on a roll, and I couldn't stop him anymore. He was just too good then in the end. There was a chance in the first set, I felt like, and beginning of the third, yeah, for me.

Q. On Friday night, it was pretty late when you finished and you came here. You said you haven't even thought about Carlos and the match on Sunday. For me, watching you today, it was clear you had done some thinking on Saturday. Just tell us about what's been going on between you and your coach in the last 24 hours.

JAN-LENNARD STRUFF: Yeah, I mean, I played Carlos twice before, like we said. I had a very aggressive game style against him all the times, I would say. That game style suits me best, I would say.

If he's playing, if he has so much time, he's just too good. He's playing too well. And I tried to put a bit of pressure on him, tried to take a bit his time away and go for my shots, because he's more physical better, I would say. He's very, very fast. He like to rally. He like to play very aggressive, as well.

He stood very far back. So I thought, okay, he want to play the loop ball in and start the rally, but that was the plan, to avoid this one. I managed to do this.

I think it was maybe like this that even if I didn't win all points, with second serve coming to front I got passed many times, but I felt like that maybe took a bit of his quality from the return. He made two or three mistakes. He didn't do, maybe he was thinking, is he coming or not, but that's other question.

Yeah, definitely had a game plan. Definitely wanted to go as much to the net as possible there. But, yeah, first game wasn't that great, but I wanted to go already with the second serve, but missed the second serve.

Yeah, I was in the game. Had my chances. But he was too good at the end and congrats to him.

Q. Are you still with Carsten Arriens?

JAN-LENNARD STRUFF: Yes.

Q. But he was not here today?

JAN-LENNARD STRUFF: No, no. So Carsten is still my main coach. Here with me at the tournament was Marvin Netuschil. He's coaching for some weeks this year. They share as well. He's traveling with me some weeks.

He was with me in Doha and in challenger Manama in Bahrain in the beginning of February or March at the beginning. So they always in contact. So I had a phone call with Carsten yesterday, but Carsten and Marvin are very close working together.

Marvin here presented me his thoughts and the thoughts of Carsten. So they are doing all together. Carsten is coming to Roland Garros, for example. Marvin is in Halle next time. So we share a bit.

Q. It's just over an hour since the match finished. How do you feel right now? Are you able to reflect with pride of the last two weeks and the journey, or does it feel not great because you didn't manage to get over the line?

JAN-LENNARD STRUFF: Yeah, I think it will sink in the next days. Just realizing, it's strange, it's two weeks' tournament, I have just been in doubles that far, in Australian Open, for example. I was in semis.

It was a new feeling for me to be that long in tournament. It felt like it was way longer than two weeks, I would say, because it feels like I'm four weeks in Madrid right now. But it was a great time.

Yeah, of course I wanted to go all the way to win today, but I would definitely say if someone told me two weeks ago you're gonna play the finals, I would take it, yeah, definitely.

Yeah, I'm proud the way I played, proud the way I presented myself today, and yeah, that's way to go, yeah.

Q. Congrats. How do you feel physically? How did you feel physically today? Because you had to go for the semis, all the matches in the main tournament. It was a lot of play.

JAN-LENNARD STRUFF: Yeah, it was a lot of play, definitely. It was a lot of three-sets matches, as well. Like last four, five matches were all three sets, I think. I had two qually matches, as well, which were two sets, but many, many sets.

But physically I felt pretty good. I mean, I could have continued playing, for sure. Was just today a lot of mental, I would say, as well. Maybe, yeah, the last matches were also, like because it was very new for me maybe, yeah, it was demanding, as well, for the mind, I would say.

But the body feels great, yeah.