ROLAND GARROS

June 7, 2025

Niels McDonald

Press Conference

N. McDONALD/M. Schoenhaus

6-7, 6-0, 6-3

THE MODERATOR: Congratulations, Niels. It's only your third professional tournament, and it's your first Grand Slam title as a boy, so can you explain all this progress and how happy you are with your win?

NIELS McDONALD: I'm extremely happy to start here of all the players and end up winning the tournament. It's an honor after probably a lot of legends have won this.

But also, it's just one step of a big goal and dream I'm chasing that I started with early years. So, yeah, today or tomorrow we can celebrate, but at the end, then we also go back to work. Then we keep working to maybe play here on the big stage one day.

But, of course, it's an absolute honor and pleasure to win this tournament, and I'm more than happy to raise the trophy here.

THE MODERATOR: Questions in English.

Q. You said I think yesterday when we were chatting about how you had worked on your mental mindset, et cetera. How critical was that after dropping the first set today?

NIELS McDONALD: It was very important probably, because I mean, I came on court. I was nervous, of course. It's a big stage. The court felt bigger also, so it's like, oh, it's something else than what we played before. So it's like at the back of the returns, you feel it.

I lose the first set pretty close, but also with some nervous decisions that came out of nowhere, some not smart returns, some tightness on some shots. But, I mean, at the end I lost it.

Being there mentally I had to stay in it. Of course, I'm going to leave my heart out there on that match. Then I just told myself, All right, now we go for more, now we put even more energy now, now we hit the balls more now. Then it ended up working out really well.

I felt much powerful in the second and third set. I was feeling myself more. I was moving my legs better. Then it all came kind of into mode of telling myself from the start of the second set, All right, I can win this, I want to win this. So I pushed everything I could for that.

Q. You said some lovely words on court about your coach. Can you elaborate his name, firstly? But also, what is your partnership together and what it means for the future?

NIELS McDONALD: He's right there. His name is Gianluca Marchiori. We've working together around eight, nine months maybe. I'm really grateful to have him by my side. He's an awesome coach, and I'm ready for the future with him to take the big steps.

You know, if anyone was asking, I'm not stopping with him. It's just he's taking a little break. I'll still when I'm in Stockholm, because he lives there and trains there with me. We still work at the academy, just the travels and stuff. So, yeah, he's becoming a father now, and I wish him best of luck for that of course.

Yeah, so we'll take some months off for him to have some time with his family. Then we go back on tour whenever he feels ready for it.

Q. I read in press a quote from Philipp Petzschner about the two of you making it through to the final and how proud he was, but it had also said that you could do whatever you wanted to do with his hair. There was some sort of little bet. Are you going to hold him to that? What are you going to do in that regard?

NIELS McDONALD: It actually happened already yesterday (smiling). It was the bet at start of the tournament. If one of us Germans wins the tournament, then yeah, we do a haircut of his choice. I mean, since both of us were in the finals, then one of us is going to win.

Yeah, so we went to the barbershop yesterday at 6:30. We booked an appointment for him. First we wanted to do like an Avatar haircut, just like an arrow on his head. Then watching it live, we were dying of laughter. Then we ended up feeling so bad we said, All right, shave everything off.

And just for everyone to know, I have one more bet with my coach. Philipp and them said if a German wins, but he said if I win, which I ended up doing, so I'm allowed to put some color into his hair now also, yeah.

Q. Any color?

NIELS McDONALD: Any color of choice except orange, because he doesn't like it.

Q. You talked about your Scottish heritage, as well through the week, and you said you had some great support there. Was that your dad in the stands that you hugged afterwards?

NIELS McDONALD: Yeah, that was my stepdad who we live with in Germany. My dad was probably watching from home, but that was my stepdad. He has been part of my tennis career since I started with it.

He's always been there for me, and I'm super grateful to have him by my side. He takes critical decisions, but at the end, he's always there for me, always supports me. If things are we're not agreeing, it's still he just wants the best at the end, which I'm super grateful for.

Yeah, he was here the whole week supporting me, which I was super happy and grateful for, with my brother by his side. Yeah, it was absolutely awesome to have those two here.