ADELAIDE INTERNATIONAL

January 13, 2026

Aleksandar Vukic

Press Conference

A. VUKIC/S. Tsitsipas

7-6, 7-6

THE MODERATOR: Aleksandar, congratulations on the win. Incredible win today. Just take us through that. How do you manage to raise your game in key moments? There were many points which must have been really stressful, how did you adapt today?

ALEKSANDAR VUKIC: Yeah, I thought I played a pretty good match overall, solid. I thought I served really well in the first set. Second set not as well, but I started playing better from the back. Started kind of constructing the points better, kind of playing the way I wanted to.

So I felt actually the second set I played better from the back. The first serve kind of got me through that first set, which you need sometimes. I felt like having the two matches in qualifying really helped me, because they were kind of tricky matches. Obviously at the start of the year it's kind of like trying to get back into the mode of competing. When you're kind of enjoying the off-season so much, it's like you need to switch back on. I wasn't able to do that in Brisbane, but kind of found that here in Adelaide.

THE MODERATOR: Questions.

Q. Stefanos was in here earlier and he felt you played the big points better, and it's really fine margins when you're talking two tiebreaks. He's kicking himself about that dropshot he did in the second that went nowhere. Did you feel like you played just those key points better?

ALEKSANDAR VUKIC: Yeah. Like I said, there's not much in it. We both kind of had chances in that second set, a few break points either way. I thought he served very well during those times. He made some crucial serves up until that 6-5 where he kind of gave me a second serve and I was able to get back and get in a decent position.

But, yeah, overall not much in it. He served well for the most part, and when he is serving like that it's tough to get in his service games. Overall, yeah, very happy that I gave myself a chance to win that match and today was able to take it.

Q. Where does this win rate in terms of the wins you've had over the journey? This is a guy that's been in the top 10, he's been in Grand Slam finals, last year probably wasn't his best, but he's a really, he's one of the superstars of the tour. Where does this one rank for you?

ALEKSANDAR VUKIC: Yeah, it's up there now. I think in recent memory the last, when I think about the last five, six months it's definitely up there.

Luckily, now I'm kind of, I'm well into playing these guys a lot of the time, so with that you become a bit more comfortable playing these matches, and a bit more assured of yourself that you can do it.

Like I was saying on court, I've beaten a lot of guys kind of ranked between like 50 and 100 in the last five months, and haven't been able to kind of keep my composure and do that, and I really wanted to do that today and was happy to do that.

Q. You mentioned on court that you're nearing 30, but you feel like you're hitting your peak. What's kind of been the key to that, and did you maybe do anything differently in preparation for this year than in previous years?

ALEKSANDAR VUKIC: Not really. I don't know. I think it's just the body, mate. Like, during pre-season I feel like I'm recovering better, feel like I'm fitter than I've ever been. I think it's just a good age to be at when you're playing tennis. You see a lot of guys in this era kick on and do really well.

So, yeah, just trying to keep going, especially in these years from, I mean, I'm still 29, but for the next few years these are kind of the peak years of my career. So just feeling really good physically.

And then you have a bit more of that experience, which is usually good, but sometimes it haunts you some, some experiences. But for the most part, you've played now a bit more, you're not as overwhelmed, so it's a good place to be.