VIKING INTERNATIONAL

June 25, 2021

Max Purcell

Devonshire Park

Press Conference

L. SONEGO/M. Purcell

6-1, 3-6, 6-1

THE MODERATOR: Obviously a difficult one today, but can you reflect on what's been a really great week for you here in Eastbourne, please.

MAX PURCELL: Yeah, winning my second-ever tour event match in the first round here after getting a Lucky Loser was great. Against another Australian who is ranked higher than me, older than me, again, great.

And then stepping up, beating a player 16 in the world, even better, and then being able to back up after hype even better, I think. Having that being my sixth three-setter in seven days with a doubles match in one of the days as well probably became a little too much tennis after not doing a whole the lot previous few weeks with a little bit of injury.

Yeah, I'm pretty proud of my efforts, and fingers crossed, I can start doing some similar damage in some more tournaments like this.

Q. What do you take away from this? I have no doubt you're obviously disappointed with not getting the win today, but when you look back on this week and considering what you have just said, what do you take away?

MAX PURCELL: My coach has always told me, Believe in your game. It's there.

Obviously it's harder to believe in your game when you don't really have like the evidence, right? So you can tell yourself as much as you want, but I guess getting those wins this week and then playing such long matches day after day just kind of gives me that confidence that I can play with these guys. You know, they are not that much better than me, if better than me at all. Maybe it's just the experience that they have had and more wins under their belt, which helps them get over the line against me.

But really, there is not a whole lot of difference there. I just think if I can get a lot more singles matches under my belt and then a lot more experience at this level, I can definitely stay up here.

Q. Is that something that would play on your mind before now, before this week, where you have gone so deep in the event?

MAX PURCELL: As in play on my mind, like before I came into this event thinking if I'm good enough to compete?

Q. Yeah.

MAX PURCELL: Look, yes, but I did as good as I could with the preparation that I had to get as many practice hits, practice sets with a lot of these top guys. When I was at these tournaments for doubles, I would just screw off doubles practice and make sure I got as much singles practice as I could to try and feel comfortable hitting balls with these guys.

I kind of knew, I was like, Look, they don't hit the ball any bigger than me. I have better hands than a lot of them. I feel like my game has a lot more variety. I'm, like, the only difference is they are ranked there and I'm ranked here.

If you had to tell a person who had never seen it before, they'd think there was not much difference. I just kept telling myself, like, You're in with a chance. These guys are afraid of you. Yeah, just, why not?

Q. Well done today. In a way, your performance today might even be your best of the week in a strange way. You were struggling so much clearly with injury, and you got a bit of a hammering in that first set. The way you came back in the second, that says a lot about the way you played. Were you most pleased with that?

MAX PURCELL: Yeah, I got a bit of like a thoracic back injury later yesterday's match, just hurting to pull wide out on my forehand. Sonego is such a good player, moves the ball around so well. I just felt something had to change. I wasn't winning anything from the back, especially I kind of felt he knew it as well.

I'm pretty quick-thinking on my feet. I just thought, look, I do play a lot of doubles. I'm good around the net. I practice a lot coming forward, so why not just take away him being able to spread me wide in the court and trying to shorten up the points and get into the net and put a bit of pressure on him.

That seemed to work well, and I was thinking I had a chance in that third if I could keep some scoreboard pressure on him, but, yeah, he played a few good shots in my first service game to break me and he kind of ran away with it.

Yeah, I have played matches before, I have been down. Second-round qualifying in the Australian Open started last year, I was down 4-Love, double break in the third set against Gianluca Mager, and I won that one, won the six games straight to win that. So I have been in situations where I'm losing. These last three matches in main draw I'm down a break in the third set and I'm just finding ways to compete and win.

So I never really count myself out, and I'm always really positive even when I'm losing.

Q. Do you see this now as a platform? I mean, if you'd have won today you'd have been up to 200 in the world, would have been your highest ranking. Do you feel as though the way you feel you're definitely going to break that 200 barrier sooner rather than later?

MAX PURCELL: Yeah, if you go back and basically check what points and ranking benchmarks kind of look like, with the amount of points I have at the moment, that would be probably top 200 in the world, but (indiscernible) keeping singles points for this whole COVID ranking system at the moment basically it's hard to move.

I'm basically taking it like this is the most singles points I have ever had at one time, might not be my career-high ranking, but it should be. Yeah, I have got Wimbledon and then three or four challengers singles tournaments I'm really excited to get stuck into. And fingers crossed, I can do well there and add a lot more points and maybe try and finish that trip inside the top 170, top 150.

Q. Also, in a weird sense, I guess, while you have done well over here, you have picked up some reasonable dollars, in a weird sense you have missed out in not being able to go and play quallies for Wimbledon.

MAX PURCELL: I wasn't in quallies for Wimbledon, so I didn't miss out on that.

Q. You were not going to?

MAX PURCELL: I wasn't in. I didn't get in. I was at 280 and the cut was 240-something, so I missed out by a little bit there.

The only thing that's going to hurt me is potentially next year with still -- I'm not sure what they are going to do with the rankings, but if I don't find myself into Wimbledon main draw next year and I'm stuck in Wimbledon qualifying, then it's impossible to defend the result I have had here. So, yeah, fingers crossed by then I can slip in the main draw (smiling).

Q. About the final, having played today, if Alex gets through, do you fancy him to win the final?

MAX PURCELL: Yeah. Yeah, I think Alex is really savvy on the grass. He loves it. You know, if I found myself close, then there is no reason why Alex couldn't blow Lorenzo out of the park with the way he plays, especially when he's playing well and he is at the moment.

There is no reason why Alex can't win the tournament, and I really hope he does, if he gets through today and hopefully gets through tomorrow.