ROLAND GARROS

June 7, 2023

Alexander Zverev

Press Conference

A. ZVEREV/T.M. Etcheverry

6-4, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4

THE MODERATOR: Questions for Sascha.

Q. Congrats, Alex. Considering everything you've been through, this semifinal must feel a bit sweeter than the other ones you've got through to at Grand Slams?

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: Maybe looking at the history of last year a little bit, but I'm in the semifinal of a Grand Slam. I'm happy to be in a semifinal of a Grand Slam any time that I'm there.

But, of course, for me the tournament is not over. I'm happy to be here, but I know that hopefully I have two more matches ahead, and they're not going to get easier.

Q. Sascha, congratulations.

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: Go on.

Q. You were at it for over three hours today. You were at it like a lion for over three hours showing so much stamina, and we also know that lions have really big hearts as well. So how big is your heart? How big has it been over the last year?

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: I'm just happy you're asking me how big my heart is, not something else (laughing).

Q. How big has your heart been here at Roland Garros to get this far?

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: The size of a human being, I guess (laughing). No, but as I said before, I'm happy to be in the semis. We're in a semis, nothing more, nothing less.

Q. Obviously you didn't have an easy start of the season after your big injury. How do you explain everything seems to be clicking right now in Paris?

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: I don't know. As I said before, it was definitely a tournament that I marked on my calendar this year. I'm happy to be playing the way I'm playing here in Paris. I'm extremely happy with how things are going, but as I said, the tournament is not over yet. There are still potentially two very, very difficult matches ahead, and I'm looking forward to that.

Q. Could you break down the possible challenges of Rune and Ruud, please.

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: Ruud has been there before. He was in the final here last year, so he knows exactly what it means and what it takes.

Rune is a very young, up-and-coming guy. I think he is playing extremely well, especially on the clay court surface. He made the final in Monte-Carlo, made the final of Rome, so that speaks for himself kind of.

I think it's going to be an interesting one for them tonight.

Q. When you approach the semifinals of a major, is it a different mindset that you have compared to any of the other tournaments, and is it going to be different this year because of the history of the last 12 months?

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: I don't think about it anymore. I'm going on court to win tennis matches. I'm not thinking about what happened last year. I have to talk about it a lot obviously, and that's fine. That's everybody's job, but I'm here to win tennis matches. I'm here to go deep in a Grand Slam.

Of course, it's different. Tennis consists out of Grand Slams, you know. Grand Slams are tennis history. That's what you play for. I think the two most important things in tennis are Grand Slams and the Olympic Games.

When you are in a semifinal or final of either of those, I think that's very different than being in a final of another tournament.

Q. There's been many talks about your injections. What is the situation now? Do you know exactly what you can or can't do on and off the court?

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: Now I can do whatever I want.

Q. On and off?

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: Yes, that was the ruling. For this week, and then they're going to decide about Wimbledon again.

Q. When you go through such a bad injury like you did, do you have to, to an extent, reinvent your game in some aspects, or is it just going back from where you left?

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: Well, you know, going back from where you left because I think it is different. I couldn't play for the first seven months of my injury. Then for the next three, four months I was still in pain, so I wasn't pain-free. I wasn't able to move the way I wanted to.

But, I mean, sometimes it's also just reminding yourself of who you were and what kind of matches you have won in the past. I think that is important sometimes as well.

But, again, I think I'm at a stage now where I'm not thinking about the injury so much anymore. I'm not thinking about what happened. I'm just happy to be back where I was last year, and I have another chance. Hopefully I can take it.

Q. Since you're back on the tennis court, what has been the key moments, the key steps in which you felt that your tennis was back, your confidence was back, something was back?

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: Yeah, for sure being pain-free. It took longer than expected. Still, beginning of the season, I mean, Australia I was playing on one leg still. Then I think until basically Indian Wells, Miami, I was still in pain at times.

I was not able to practice normally. I was not able to do the things that I wanted. So regarding that, I think it was just getting through the process. Yeah, I mean, after that it also takes time to feel the confidence again in your leg to be sliding around the court, being able to move the way you were.

But, again, I'm talking about the injury more than I'm thinking about it, you know. It's in the past now.