BRISBANE INTERNATIONAL

January 7, 2026

Emerson Jones

Press Conference

L. SAMSONOVA/E. Jones

6-4, 6-1

THE MODERATOR: Of course not the result you would hope for today, but how would you rate your performance here in Brisbane this week?

EMERSON JONES: Yeah, definitely I'm super happy with how I played and how I performed. She was a tough opponent today. She's top 20, and I have only played Rybakina in the top 10, top 20, so I think it was, yeah, it was a really tough match, but I was really happy with how I handled it, yeah.

THE MODERATOR: Questions.

Q. Can you just give us a little bit of a picture of what 2026 is going to look for you, the 17-year-old. You're in Year 12. How is that going to work? Are you home schooling? How do you balance what's going to be a very quick introduction to the limelight of the sporting world and keeping your feet grounded and all those kinds of things but also managing finishing school and all the responsibilities that come with being a teenager?

EMERSON JONES: Yeah, hopefully I'm going to be given a lot of opportunities this summer, just like last summer, and even in the middle of the year, hopefully I can get my ranking up to play the bigger tournaments.

But yeah, I mean, school's just there. It's not my priority, but, you know, I'm going to finish school and hopefully that's the end of it for me and I don't want to touch books or anything after that. Yeah, I'm just going to focus on my tennis.

I think I do a pretty good job with it all, to be honest, handling myself with a lot of things. Yeah, I think I'm just really excited for the opportunities to come.

Q. At 3-Love up, what was going through your head? You said it was only your second time playing a top-10, top-20 player.

EMERSON JONES: Yeah, honestly I was just playing really well. Normally I come out really well. I knew she was obviously going to lift her level knowing that she's played way bigger players than me. I just had to kind of keep myself grounded.

Yeah, I think she knew the level even she knows level way higher than me, so yeah, I think I did really well to come out and put myself in a good position to get a good chance in the first set.

Q. Sounds like you're very grounded with your expectations, but when you're in that position as well, are you someone who, like are you sort of your harshest critic? Do you want to get more out of yourself, or you give yourself a bit of a pass, like, hey, I'm 17 playing a top-20 player? What's that like?

EMERSON JONES: Yeah, well, I know there is a couple of other girls that are only a little bit older than me, and they're breaking through already. Yeah, I think I had the level today at the start, and, you know, even at the end of the first set, I definitely thought I had the level.

Yeah, I didn't fall behind really. I think I played really well, yeah.

Q. What can you take out of this into the Australian Open? You have done so well here. Like you said, you're very proud of the way you played, but what learnings can you take that's going to really help you with that great opportunity that you've got there?

EMERSON JONES: I think it's going to give me more confidence than anything, to be honest. Winning these matches, even if they're first rounds, definitely give me confidence, because, you know, I have only -- that was my second top-50 win of my life, and this was my second time playing a top-20 player, so definitely the experience is knowing I have played these women before and that level, I definitely think I come into the match knowing how they play, and it gives me confidence to know the level.

Q. What are you learning about your game when you go out and play these players? What is it that you're trying to work on and improve to match up with them?

EMERSON JONES: Yeah, so, I mean, I feel like my serve definitely has gotten a bit better as I'm playing women's, just because it has to. It's fine in juniors, but when you move out of juniors, you go and take the next step into women's.

I think playing a top 20 is another step from playing a top 50. I mean, I feel like I'm there, like, playing the top 50s, I'm okay, my serve is good, but when you really take another step up like today, you know, things just have to get a little bit better.

Q. Ash Barty came out recently and gave you a big tick of approval, and certainly there is a lot of talk about you now after the performance the other night against Tatjana. So how do you deal with that expectation that people are saying you're the next big thing?

EMERSON JONES: Yeah, I mean, I have had that for a while since last year, and, you know, doesn't really put any pressure on me. Everyone compares me to Ash and all that, but Ash has her own journey, and I think she did absolutely amazing and it would be amazing to achieve what she did.

But, yeah, I kind of focus on myself and, you know, I think that definitely works for me, just focus on who's in front of me, and I definitely think that helps, yeah.

Q. You talk about your ranking and things like that. When you talk about 2026, is it a matter of you go, Okay, I want to crack the top 100? What is it you put up on your vision board of this year that you personally want to tick off?

EMERSON JONES: Yeah, well, at the end of last year, my coach and I, we wanted to crack the top 150, so that was great that I got to do that right at the end.

So, yeah, definitely try to make the top 100 is for sure a goal that we'd love to, yeah, we'd love to crack, but I think, yeah, just the ranking comes with your results and everything, so I just got to keep focusing on improving my game and hopefully the ranking will come.

Q. Being a dual-sport, multi-sport athlete growing up and you had your sport for choice as we know, that's probably a big asset that Australian kids have growing up as opposed to maybe other countries where we're so talented in terms of what we play growing up. What do you think that does for your game in terms of your athleticism?

EMERSON JONES: Yeah, I mean, it always helps to be, like, an athletic person, coming from an athletic family, so yeah, I think it definitely helps. I was always swimming, running, doing other sports for skills.

Yeah, for sure it helps me. Yeah, I'd say that.