ROLAND GARROS

June 3, 2021

Carlos Alcaraz

Press Conference

C. ALCARAZ/N. Basilashvili

6-4, 6-2, 6-4

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. Carlos, you battled quite hard today, even third set he fought back, you showed a lot of positive emotions. How important was your focus today on making sure that you stayed positive no matter what he did?

CARLOS ALCARAZ: Well, today the positive emotions is -- it was really, really important because Nikoloz is a really, really good tennis player. He has a lot of great skills. He hits the ball really, really hard, and if you don't focus, if you are not focused, well, it's hard to play against him. You have to be focused all the time.

Even in the tough moments, you have to be focused and positive. That's the good way.

In the first set he broke me 4-3 to 4-4, and if I went down in that game, it was really, really hard. I was focused, and that's a good skill for me.

Q. Obviously you've played a lot of matches there now. Just how high is your confidence, and do you sort of feel yourself growing more and more confident as the rounds go?

CARLOS ALCARAZ: Yes, of course. When I'm playing the matches, I feel more comfortable in every match. I think I get more comfortable in this match to the next one.

Q. You're the youngest player to reach the third round at Roland Garros since 1992, which is quite a few years before you were born. How does it feel to keep making history and playing such good tennis?

CARLOS ALCARAZ: Well, it's good. Obviously it's good, the numbers, but I still focus on me. That means that I'm going the right way. I am doing the right things, and I keep this.

I'm still growing up as a player and as a person, and that's the important thing.