At Roland Garros,

On Nadal’s absence

“I felt bad, I have to say, when I heard the news, when I found out he couldn’t participate and probably the rest of the year. As I said before, as a tennis fan and a Rafa fan, I love watching him play. I always want to watch the best players play and compete in a tournament because you learn every time. It was really bad news. I wondered how it was going to be this year without him. I hope to see him next year, 100%, in top form.

On the comparison with Nadal at 20

” I do not know. It’s another era. I can’t say if I’m stronger than him at the same age. He did great things at my age (20), but I can’t really answer your question.

On his wounds

“It was very difficult at the end of last year. I was not able to play the Turin Masters. In Australia, I really wanted to play. I thought I had the opportunity to go far in the table. I picked up an injury. I had four, five weeks to recover. At the same time, I always look on the bright side of things. So it gave me the opportunity to prepare well for the rest of the season, to be better prepared for the tournaments that were going to take place afterwards. I was able to train, stay calm. I was also able to train on my mental state, on staying positive despite the difficult times. It is useful to approach a tournament well.

On his new status

“It’s crazy for me to be the number 1 seed. I worked a lot for this. I’m happy to be here, to be seeded number 1. I’m the same player as last year, but I’m more mature. Mentally, I’m stronger. I can read the short better than before. It is very important for me. At the beginning, when I was playing against the best in the best stadiums, especially when I played Rafa in Madrid in 2021, it was difficult for me. Difficult to stay calm. I learned as I went. »

On his preparation

“After the defeat in Rome (from the second round), I took a few days off doing nothing, just relaxing. I stayed with my family, my friends. I needed it too. I played golf once. It is very beneficial for me. I trained for five days at the Academy, at home. It helped me a lot. I was far from tournaments. I had more intense, more physical training sessions. By chaining the matches, I didn’t have much opportunity to train intensely. I had to train for Roland-Garros.