ROLEX SHANGHAI MASTERS

October 8, 2023

Sebastian Korda

Press Conference

S. KORDA/D. Medvedev

7-6, 6-2

THE MODERATOR: Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the press conference of Sebastian Korda. As usual, we'll do the English questions first, and then if you need to raise any questions in Chinese, we'll have simultaneous translation for you.

First off, congratulations, Sebe. You are one of the three players that can beat Daniil in 2023 in straight sets twice, the other two are Alcaraz and Djokovic. How excited are you about your performance today?

SEBASTIAN KORDA: Yeah, it was a great match overall. Tiebreaker could have gone anybody's way. I'm very happy to play a solid couple of points, find a way to win it, and then just played a really good second set after that.

THE MODERATOR: Any questions?

Q. Congratulations on the win today. I was just wondering if you could remember, what was going through your mind when you saved those set points?

SEBASTIAN KORDA: I don't know, during the point I was like, this guy is so quick it's unbelievable. Yeah, he just finds a way to put balls in the court. I absolutely hammered a forehand volley into the corner and he somehow got it back.

Yeah, he's just so quick, and he's so consistent, so it's just super difficult to get anything by him, really. You kind of just have to go and win the point. You know you got to be aggressive, you got to do different things to kind of disrupt him as much as you possibly can. Yeah, just pretty fortunate in those set points to actually win a couple of those.

Q. Is this more satisfying or equally satisfying to your win at the Australian Open?

SEBASTIAN KORDA: Yeah, for sure. It's been a really long year for me. A lot of injuries, a lot of time off. To finally get a really good win like this against a top-5 player is great for me. I had a lot of fun today, and now I got to get ready for my next match.

Q. Daniil said your serve today is really doing really well. He said you usually doesn't serve that well, because if you do, you will win a lot more matches. Do you agree with that, and can you also talk about why you always performing so well against him?

SEBASTIAN KORDA: Yeah, I wish I could serve as well as I did, every single day, that would definitely make everything a lot easier. I had a really good first-serve percentage. Against players like him you have to serve really well, you have to be aggressive on your serve and hit your spots and go to the net.

I think one of the things that kind of maybe disrupts him is kind of just being an aggressive player, going to the net, you know, slicing the ball, bringing him in. I think I do that really well, and I think it gives him a little bit of trouble.

Q. Sebe, this was your first win over a top-5 player. Was that a milestone that sort of had meaning for you?

SEBASTIAN KORDA: Yeah, it's really cool. I think the last time I played him I think he was like 7 in the world, but obviously he's a player who is top 3 in the world, no matter what the rankings say. He's an incredible player and I had to play some really good tennis today to win the match.

Q. I was wondering also, have you talked to your father at all after this win?

SEBASTIAN KORDA: No, he sent me a text, and then he was going to go to sleep (smiling). I haven't talked to my parents yet. The time change is brutal for them. It's an early morning.

But, yeah, when I get back to the hotel I'll give 'em a ring and we'll talk a little bit.

Q. But they had obviously been watching?

SEBASTIAN KORDA: Yeah, for sure my dad. I don't know about my mom, she was probably sleeping. But, yeah, whenever I'm in this time zone or my sisters are here in Asia playing golf he's always watching every single hole of theirs. So he kind of shifts his time zone to here and, you know, yeah, he's just, I guess he's enjoying it.

Q. Your next opponent is Cerundolo. Any comments on that one?

SEBASTIAN KORDA: I don't think we've ever really played against each other. Obviously another high-level player. He's having a great year. Definitely have to play some really good tennis again to hopefully get the job done.

Q. When you came to Zhuhai you ranked like 33, and you talk about your goal is season-ending top 20. You're right now 26 and getting more points here. Could you talk about the feeling of reaching that goal, getting closer to that goal?

SEBASTIAN KORDA: Yeah, it's definitely getting closer. I think I'm defending a couple points from last year, two finals, so I don't know where that's going to really put me. I'm not really too, don't really watch it too much.

But, yeah, obviously I'm playing some really good tennis again, I'm very excited for that, and hopefully I can keep, you know, just continue doing what I'm doing and hopefully have some good results soon.

Q. Also, you said the court of Zhuhai is one of the fastest on the pro tour. How do you find the conditions here?

SEBASTIAN KORDA: Yeah, I think the court's pretty quick. I think just, playing with the balls, it slows it down a little bit, but I think the court itself is a pretty fast court. I definitely like playing here.

Q. Also, in Zhuhai you try a lot of new things. Any new experience so far in Shanghai?

SEBASTIAN KORDA: No, I haven't done anything. I got here super late. I've just been kind of sleeping. Unfortunately, been stuck in traffic quite a bit. The traffic can be slightly difficult here. But, yeah, you know, just enjoying the hotel, getting a bite to eat, and playing tennis.

Q. How do you feel about the venue, the players rest area, and the atmosphere here in Shanghai?

SEBASTIAN KORDA: Yeah, the atmosphere's great. I think the crowd gets really excited. I think it's really funny, you know, they cheer for both players. I think that's a great crowd, they really enjoy their tennis here.

The fans are super passionate. They always want a ton of autographs. I think they're really nice and, hopefully, I can play many more matches in front of them.

Q. A lot of people talk about, like, Alcaraz, Rune or Sinner. Do you also feel like as a young player like yourself, you're kind of a bit like under the radar to a lot of people? Can you talk about that?

SEBASTIAN KORDA: Yeah, I mean, they obviously have better results than me. I don't think I'm under the radar in any sort. You know, just have some good results here and there and hopefully be in the talks with them. But, yeah, they're incredible players and hopefully we'll be playing against each other for many, many years.

THE MODERATOR: All right, thank you everyone.