AUSTRALIAN OPEN

January 10, 2025

Taylor Fritz

Press Conference

THE MODERATOR: Taylor, welcome back to Melbourne. Tell us how fun and how important it was to win the United Cup last week in Sydney with Coco.

TAYLOR FRITZ: Yeah, it was awesome. Obviously, I mean, it helps a lot when I have a teammate that doesn't drop a set the entire week. Coco made my job a lot easier.

It's just great to start the year off with just a good week playing good tennis, bring some confidence into Australian Open.

I think also we won it the first year, we lost last year, I think we really wanted to get it back. It's great to win with a team, as well, because you can kind of enjoy that, enjoy that moment with everybody, which you don't get to do that often. It's normally just yourself if you win something.

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. How, if at all, do things feel different for you this time arriving at a Grand Slam tournament having been a Grand Slam finalist not too long ago?

TAYLOR FRITZ: I don't think much feels very different for me. I think it kind of feels the same. I'm approaching it as I have other slams.

Last year I was happy with all my slam results. I want to treat it the same way.

The worst thing I can do is be looking super far ahead in the draw and be looking I'm a top-four seed, putting all this pressure on myself. It's the same mentality I always have: take it one match at a time, don't look too far ahead.

Yeah, I don't feel like it's much different other than where my ranking's at.

Q. I think it was in the quarters or something last year you said you viewed your head-to-head against a player like Djokovic, you compartmentalized it based on what type of player you were. When you were younger you treated it differently to three years ago. Do you now view yourself to be in a new era of being Taylor Fritz after what's transpired over the last 18 months?

TAYLOR FRITZ: I'd say over the last year, I've definitely improved a lot as a player. I'd say, like, in my head, in my head, whatever the record is with Novak 0-10, 0-11, whatever it is (smiling), in my head I'm remembering the match here last year, because I thought I played pretty well in that match. I'm remembering the match in Shanghai. I played fine in that match.

I obviously wouldn't say, like, in my head it's 0-0. I do think the last couple times we've played it's been much closer. I've been able to show there's opportunities there for me to, I wouldn't say win, because I've never been a set away from winning. But I won a set in Australia. I had definitely chances to win the second set in Shanghai.

Definitely showing that there's looks there. Yeah, I mean, it's still going to be a really, really tough one for me to win eventually.

Q. Someone did beat Djokovic recently, Reilly Opelka. I know you go way back. What are your thoughts on his current status, his run in Brisbane?

TAYLOR FRITZ: Yeah, it made me really happy to see Reilly come back, just be playing really good tennis in Brisbane. I knew he was coming back. I was already happy with the fact that he's healthy enough to play, be playing again.

Yeah, I was even happier to see him having those results, beating really solid players every match he played. He beat a lot of really good guys. Then to have a win like beating Novak, obviously that's going to give him a lot of confidence.

I think when you're out for a long time, something he's talked to me about, you're out for years, you get a little bit I guess unsure of your ability when you're coming back because it's just been so long.

I mean, it's amazing for him to do that. Now there's no question. I know there's no question in his mind about if he's going to have any problems with his level of tennis coming back and beating a top player again. I'm really happy about it. Obviously Reilly is one of my best friends.

Q. The mental approach, the strategical approach regarding Novak, in the matches you've had over the years. Given now you've reached the point where you're superior, you've beaten everybody except him and Alcaraz, you've had a rough time against Sinner of late, I just wondered, in the off-season, in downtime, when you're looking back at those matches, do you spend much time analyzing them as what you're going to do in the future against them?

TAYLOR FRITZ: I wouldn't say I spend time on those things, like, very after the fact. Obviously I'm working on things in the off-season. When it comes to I guess analyzing those matches, figuring out what things I need to get better at, where maybe I'm losing control of points, things I could be doing better, I'm doing all that stuff during the matches. As soon as the matches are over, I'm putting down notes of certain things maybe I need to get better at.

Sometimes there's matches you play and shots you miss where, That shouldn't have happened, I know I can just do better. There's certain things where, This shot, I need to put time into it, focus on it, get it better.

After I played kind of a stretch last year of the US Open final, playing Sinner, the Laver Cup deciding match against Carlos, the Shanghai match against Novak, I felt like I had a really good idea of some common themes I can work on.

I feel like since Shanghai, I've done a really good job of improving. I still lost two matches to Jannik at the World Tour Finals, but I said there I felt much more comfortable in those matches than I did in the US Open final.

I feel like there's definitely been a lot of improvement in those areas that I need to improve on to be able to beat those guys.

Q. There was a handshake thing at the United Cup that got people talking. You've had a few in your career. What is it like at the end of a match, one there's been a lot of back-and-forth, how that feels when you go and shake your opponent's hand?

TAYLOR FRITZ: To be honest, I think everyone looks good shaking hands when you're the winner. Everyone is graceful when they win.

I think it says the most about people of how they react in a loss. I think that's when you get to see the most about people.

When I lose matches, I always try to look my opponent in the eyes. If they played great, I just say, Hey, too good, congrats, good luck.

I think when you're playing against someone, obviously emotions, a lot of emotions, and a lot of people absolutely hate to lose. It sucks to lose. It's very frustrating.

It's just at the end of the day a respect thing. Once the match is over, just look your opponent in the eyes and say, Great match. I respect you.

You might be really upset and emotional about the match. That's normal. A lot of people, we're competitors, we hate to lose. Yeah, like I said, I think how you handle a loss shows a lot. It's very important.

Q. Word gets around pretty quickly about those players who aren't so good at that?

TAYLOR FRITZ: No, because I think it just depends on the match. I think some people might be extra upset after a loss, maybe have their personal reasons. So sometimes they don't do that stuff. Sometimes they do do that.

At the end of the day, I don't think it's that big of a deal. I think people like to make a bigger deal about it than it actually is. Yeah, that's about it.

Q. I got sent a stat about you the other day that since 2020 you've played the most five-set matches of any player at Grand Slams. Is that something we can expect to see at this tournament? What is your strategy here?

TAYLOR FRITZ: I hope not (smiling). That really surprises me, because I actually don't feel like I've played a ton of five-setters. I guess I've played a good amount.

But yeah, I don't know. Hopefully I'm going to not play early five-setters, because then you're kind of playing catch-up the whole tournament I guess with the toll you're putting on your body.

If I'm losing, I don't know, I'm always down to try to get it done in five sets. Yeah, I think hopefully I'm not going to be having an insane amount of court time.