AUSTRALIAN OPEN

January 15, 2024

Adrian Mannarino

Press Conference

A. MANNARINO/S. Wawrinka

6-4, 3-6, 5-7, 6-3, 6-0

THE MODERATOR: Adrian, what a match today. What are your impressions after winning against Stan Wawrinka?

ADRIAN MANNARINO: I'm feeling happy. It was a good thing to win the match. That was obviously a tough one today.

That was pretty intense. The conditions were not easy. It was important for me to win the match, so that's what I've done finally. I don't really care about what happened, how I've played, and everything. I mean, I just hit the ball, and I got the win at the end, so I'm happy with that.

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. From that, do I take that you don't think you played very well, or you're just not bothered by the performance?

ADRIAN MANNARINO: Well, there was lots of up and downs during this match. I felt like I was playing pretty consistent during the set and a half. Stan started to serve really well in the second set. I had barely just one occasion to break him, but then he served an ace.

Then I did a poor game at the end of the second set. I was the sun facing me. That was not easy to serve. From that moment Stan started to be in control.

Third set was almost the same as the second one. You know, pretty tough battle. Got broken with the sun in the face again, and I started to panic a little bit.

I probably got lucky a little bit in the fourth set. I got broken. I felt like he was in control, and we had the new balls, and I started to return a little bit better. Then suddenly it switched a little bit, so yeah.

Q. I want to ask you about the balls as well if that's okay because obviously you have one of the loosest string tensions on the tour. How do you find the balls and the conditions? Does it affect you in one way or the other?

ADRIAN MANNARINO: Well, it really depends on the condition actually. When it's warm like today, it feels like the balls are really lively. They're bouncing a lot. It was really tough to return and to control the ball in the racquet.

But in the other hand, when the weather is a little bit cooler, it's way easier to control the ball. Yeah, I don't know what to think about it, honestly. In conditions like today I don't really like these balls, but let's say in cooler conditions these balls are pretty, how would you say, pretty comfortable to play with because they get bigger. You feel like you can hit a lot, and it's not really leaving the court.

Yeah, hard to say. I mean, balls is a really tricky question lately. Everybody is talking about that. I don't think there's a real good solution with that.

Q. Obviously in December you went and played the exhibition in St. Petersburg, and I know it's been a bit controversial. Lesia Tsurenko has been talking about it. I just wondered if she reached out to you and had a conversation with you and whether you can share how that conversation went or whether you didn't speak to her at all. I don't know.

ADRIAN MANNARINO: I had no contact with her, so I don't know.

Q. Can you just talk about your decision to play that exhibition? Was it straightforward for you?

ADRIAN MANNARINO: I'm a professional tennis player. I'm not into politics or anything. I just went there. I did my job. That's what I did.

I'm not supporting anything. That was a private event. That was not anything about political support. There's nothing to talk about.