MUTUA MADRID OPEN

April 25, 2025

Alexander Zverev

Press Conference

A. ZVEREV/R. Bautista Agut

6-2, 6-2

THE MODERATOR: First question, please.

Q. Without Alcaraz or Sinner, do you consider yourself the main favorite to win title?

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: I really try to focus on playing good tennis, that's my main goal. I feel like I played good tennis in Munich, I feel like I played good tennis here in the first round, and that is my main focus. When you do that, I think the results will come by themselves.

I just want to continue playing good, I just want to continue enjoying my time on the court as well, and the rest will take care of itself.

Q. What aspect of your game you are trying to improve the most right now?

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: I mean, today was not bad, right, it was a good match. In general, I still think I can serve a little bit better. In general I think all around there are things that I'm working on consistently for past few months, so that's not stopped. But as I said, I just want to continue playing good tennis, and then the rest will take care of itself.

Q. How do you feel playing here in Madrid, a very special place for you?

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: Yeah, I love it. I think I said it a lot of times, my favorite court in the world. I have great feelings, great sensations here, great memories here as well. I hope I can make another great memory this year for that.

Q. What makes Madrid different from other clay events like Rome or Roland Garros?

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: The altitude. We are on 700 meters altitude. The balls are much faster, much higher bounce. I think the altitude plays a big, big difference.

Also center court and, you know, all three big courts, it feels like you're playing an indoor tournament almost. But the number one thing is the altitude.

Q. How you, in the preparation of the match, mentally speaking, what is the difference when you are playing good tennis and when you are not?

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: You're much more relaxed. You know, if you do your thing, you know the results will come. I think this is the number one thing. You maybe trust yourself a little bit more, you maybe trust your shots a little bit more. But I think, just generally speaking, you're much more relaxed outside the court also.

Yeah, I missed that a little bit the last few months, but I definitely feel like I am that this week and last week. As I said, I just want to continue on this road, on this path that I'm on, and the rest as I said will take care of itself.

Q. On the conditions, obviously we're aware that Madrid is higher up and moves quicker, but just how different are the different clay events, and are we sometimes guilty of thinking that clay is clay when actually it's like totally different?

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: Yeah, no, no, clay is the most alive surface there is, right? I think grass is obviously a natural surface as well, but clay is the surface where the biggest differences happen, I think.

There's a big difference whether it's 30 degrees or 10 degrees. There's a big difference whether it's raining or it's completely dry. Big difference in altitude to sea level.

There's a reason why, for example, in Monaco, I never been past the semifinals, right, but Madrid and Rome I both won twice before.

It's the surface where I think the biggest differences happen in temperature also, when it's high temperature, when it's low temperature. The court is alive, so the court plays a big part of it. When it's cold the court is very, very soft and not as bouncy, the ball doesn't bounce as high, the ball doesn't go through the court as much. When it's like here, sunshine and quite warm, the court gets much firmer and the clay is kind of on top of the court. It's not like, you know, you're not, it's very difficult to explain for me, but when it's cold you feel like you're running with the clay, and when it's hot you feel like the clay's just on top of the court like a powder almost.

There is big differences in different courts. There's big differences also in weather conditions on clay. So, yeah, a lot of times, I mean, except if you're Rafa then it doesn't matter where you play, but a lot of the times different players win on this surface with different conditions.

For example, I a lot of times win when it's hot, right. All the Masters 1000 tournaments I won on clay were always in conditions when it was very, very warm. Last week in Munich I won because it was very, very warm. The years before in Munich I could barely win a match because it was 8 degrees and sometimes snowing, you know, so it really makes a big difference.

Yeah, I think non-tennis people who watch tennis don't really understand what that means, but there is really a massive difference in conditions when it's hot, cold, rainy or not rainy.

Q. On a different topic, obviously a requirement for players in finals is to do a speech whether you've won or lost. Do you think about that before a final at what you might say, and do you let yourself think, Okay, if I win, this is what I'm going to say, or do you not want to jinx it?

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: No, I don't, but I'm very lucky in regard that I'm okay in public speaking. Like, I'm fine with it. I'm okay with a microphone. Sometimes I'm too honest, but that's part of me.

We used to have this like ATP university, and we went through media training and all that, which didn't work with me because a lot of the times this media training kind of tells you what to say in the right moments, and what not to say, and what thoughts to keep to yourself. I'm like an open book, I say whatever I think and whatever I want.

In that regard also a lot of top players, you know, they're very different when they're in front of the camera and when they're in private. They're very, very different.

Me, I'm just an open book for you guys, which sometimes I get a lot of hate for, sometimes it's positive, but yeah, it is what it is.

Q. When a final finishes, when do you start thinking about what you're going to say? Is it when you're sitting down?

ALEXANDER ZVEREV: When I have the microphone. I just say whatever I feel. No, there's not like a written script for it, I just say whatever comes to mind.