ROLAND GARROS

May 29, 2025

Novak Djokovic

Press Conference

N. DJOKOVIC/C. Moutet

6-3, 6-2, 7-6

THE MODERATOR: Novak, congrats. You won in three sets, but you struggled a little bit out there. Can you update us on your status?

NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Yeah, I mean, it was a good match, a good fight, particularly in the third. Things got a little bit complicated with the blister. That was bothering me for a bit.

I ended out the match well, moving well, playing a great tiebreak. Obviously atmosphere was electric, especially in that third set. He was close to win it, so the crowd got involved.

And it was, yeah, not much fun for me. Of course it's never easy, but I try to stay calm and do what I need to do, and I think I have done that in a really good way.

THE MODERATOR: Questions in English.

Q. What is it like when you go from playing, you know, on Chatrier when it's so big and the crowd is so far away, being in a much more intimate setting like that in Lenglen, French opponent, when they're right on top of you?

NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Yeah, you can feel the difference. The crowd is very close. That's what makes this court, Suzanne Lenglen, really interesting. For the players, as well, and for the crowd, because everything is so, I guess, more intimate and loud, as well.

I always felt like in the past that Suzanne Lenglen get very loud. I think also because the fact that you're experiencing the match from up close gets you involved even more.

I feel like there is even more, I guess, younger people, more children. That's what I noticed. You know, so it was fun. Look, I haven't played in Suzanne Lenglen too many times in the last whatever years, so it was good to experience this.

Q. Also, just wanted to talk to you how different the conditions were. Today the sun is out, it's warmer, compared to the other day under the roof, it's cold. How that affects the rhythm of a match.

NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Well, it's nothing that we, as tennis players, are not used to, you know, experiencing this adaptation constantly day after day, that can be completely different. Clay is a live surface, so to say. It responds and reacts to any slightish changes of temperature and weather and wind and everything. You just have to be constantly alert and flexible enough to be able to adapt to the conditions.

Obviously same for both players, but it is challenging. No doubt about it. But it's, again, it's something that we're used to when it comes to Paris, as well. The weather is quite unpredictable generally. Can be very cold and can be very warm, which affects the ball bounce. It affects how the ball travels through the air.

Again, it depends, as well, who you play against. You just have to be ready for anything.

Q. Could you tell us a little bit about your bike ride in Paris? Is that something you have done before? You like to do on days off, say? Or is that part of just a general, I guess, thought to maybe taking your mind off tennis on the every-other-day when you're not playing?

NOVAK DJOKOVIC: I have done some bike rides in the past in Paris, but I haven't done one in a while. Roland Garros was kind enough to gift me a bicycle, so I used it yesterday for the first time.

Yeah, we were kind of trying our luck a little bit with that roundabout at the Arc de Triomphe. To be honest at one point we had cars all over the place. It was quite an adrenaline experience, but I don't think I will repeat that, especially in that environment where we were filmed. Probably in all other streets, it's much more safe.

But, yeah, we were crazy enough to get into that roundabout. It was fun but at one point but also a bit dangerous. It's great. It's great to see Paris from, you know, from the bicycle. I think it's just more fun. You're not, you know, stuck in traffic. With the car at times can be frustrating for whatever reason. But with the bicycle, it's just beautiful, if you can go around that area of the kind of epicenter of Paris, so many beautiful things to see.

Q. I just want to know how your foot is, if it's troubling, how you try to recover after a match like this, being a bit older than most of the other players.

NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Thank you (laughter).

No, no, it's true. You didn't say anything wrong, you know.

Look, the recovery time is not much longer, I feel like. I mean, I'm pretty fit at the moment. I don't feel like I have any major issues. Although it took me, like, almost an hour to deal with the blister and the bleeding that I had.

So they had to use the injections and draw the blood out and then inject something to dry out the blister. So that was, you know, not really a pleasant process. But it is something that, you know, anyone who has blisters that are bleeding has to do it.

So that's why I'm also late with you guys, and I'm sorry for that. But I don't think it's going to be an issue for me to recover. I mean, three hours was a lot of running, straight sets, but three-hour match is a good three-hour session. Good thing about slams obviously you have a day in between.

So plenty of time to recover and get ready for next one.

Q. Just want to know if you plan to watch the Champions League final on Saturday if you don't play in the night session. Who will you support if you do watch it?

NOVAK DJOKOVIC: It's going to be PSG that I will support. I will definitely watch it if I'm not playing night session. Yeah, that will be nice.

FYI, Roland Garros schedule... (Smiling).