ROLAND GARROS

May 25, 2026

Rafael Jodar

Press Conference

R. JODAR/A. Kovacevic

6-1, 6-0, 6-4

THE MODERATOR: Rafa, well done. How happy are you, your first victory ever at Roland Garros?

RAFAEL JODAR: Yeah, very, very happy. I think I did the things very well from the start, and, yeah, super happy to get my first win in Paris.

So, yeah, let's recover well now for my next match and be ready for the match on Wednesday.

THE MODERATOR: Questions.

Q. Rafa, it's been an amazing journey for you in the past 12 months. How do you feel once everything is said and done during your tennis day, do you feel like this is an opportunity that you have to seize to make best on the chances that you have? Are you in a rush, or do you have some kind of way to process these things gradually, incrementally?

RAFAEL JODAR: Yeah, I'm not in a rush at all. I think I still have to learn a lot of things in the tour. It's just my first year, and I'm experiencing a lot of things, you know, in this past few months.

But I think these experiences are really helping me to develop as a player, but I think as a person, because I'm learning a lot, you know, when I'm playing the tournaments and when I'm preparing for the matches.

So it's good to have that feeling, you know, to be able to compete in the French Open and in all these tournaments. I'm very grateful, you know, to be part of this tournament.

Q. This morning when you woke up, did you think you were going to have such a fast start and be able to play at such a high level, just because, I mean, even good players don't often get off to such an incredible start, especially their first time here. What was feeling so good today?

RAFAEL JODAR: I mean, I just tried to face every match as that is going to be a very tough match, and I think it was honestly a hard match.

I think first matches are always difficult, you know, in the tournament. So I had to serve very well. I tried to play my game during the first two sets, and even when the things, you know, got a little bit trickier or, like, more difficult for me in the third set, when I had to face those break points, I think I played those points especially very, very well, you know, playing my game.

Yes, as I said before, when you are playing in a five-set match, everything can go, you know, up and down. There are many up and downs. You just have to face with the best way possible.

Q. On your court, I mean, there was so much support. There were people standing five, six rows back trying to get a glimpse of your match. Are you getting used to having those kinds of crowds, that kind of atmosphere? What was that like experiencing that at a Grand Slam?

RAFAEL JODAR: Yeah, obviously to play in my first time in Paris at the French Open and seeing so many people, you know, not just from France, but also from other parts, especially, you know, from Spain. It was special to see also the many people cheering for me in every point is great.

I feel that support, and yeah, I'm very grateful for all the people that -- not just today, but also that are supporting me, you know, during this process.

Q. This time last year you were ranked 707. You lost in the first round of a challenger in the States. Just wonder what you remember of that time, and did you actually watch Roland Garros last year?

RAFAEL JODAR: Yeah, I was, yeah, as I said, playing challengers in the U.S. Yeah, I remember I was watching some of the matches of the French Open last year.

Yeah, it was obviously another chapter of my life, but I think that chapter also helped me, you know, to develop a lot and to be a better player now. You know, I think about those times as times that helped me to be on court.

Q. Just what do you think was the most valuable thing you learned from your months in college in America?

RAFAEL JODAR: Well, I mean, I think I learned a lot of things. I don't know. Maybe to be more mature. I think that living there alone, I think it was great to develop and to, like, do things by myself.

Sure, there were coaches and players on my team that were helping me to try to get used to the new culture and to the new things in the U.S., but it was a new chapter, new culture for me, actually a new life.

I think the way that I approached those months were really helpful for me, and I think I mature a lot in those months in college.