ROLEX PARIS MASTERS

November 6, 2026

Luca Van Assche

Press Conference

L. van ASSCHE/R. Hijikata

6-4, 6-7, 7-5

THE MODERATOR: Questions in French.

Q. Good evening, and well done. It was a crazy scenario, this match. There were ups and downs. Mentally, how did you go through the match?

LUCA van ASSCHE: Yes, there were ups and downs. There were moments when I played very well, moments when he played very well. It was a difficult match from the beginning to the end.

He's a good player who played very well from beginning to the end. It was not easy to tip the balance. I'm happy about the way I managed my emotions in the third set. It wasn't easy.

Q. We saw you rather offensive, even with your forehand. Can you tell us, this was your weak point earlier on, this forehand. Can you tell us what you did technically to counter this?

LUCA van ASSCHE: Yes, I've worked a lot on my forehand. I feel almost more at ease with that shot.

Technically, I haven't changed many things. I did change physically the way I adjust on it, the way I anchor my feet to be able to transfer my whole weight on it. I also changed a little bit my intentions.

For a long time, I used to try and hold it, and now my intentions are more to be aggressive, offensive, and to go ahead. This is the way I use my forehand.

Maybe naturally some little things have changed, but it wasn't necessarily willful. I just worked on my legs and support to be able to transfer my weight and also my intention behind the forehand.

Q. Well done. You took some time to come over. Were you already trying to recover, or was there some emotion you wanted to share with someone or you wanted to cool off after this very difficult match?

LUCA van ASSCHE: I've had a lot of things to do after the match. I have other press interviews. I had to recover, bicycle, stretching, I had a shower.

Then I came here. These things take a lot of time. At the end of this press conference, I will go quietly to see my team.

Q. When we were watching the match, we felt you were finding solutions, especially with your passing shots that worked very well at the end of the match. How does it work on the court to try and find solutions and take into account the game of the opponent?

LUCA van ASSCHE: Well, for me, it was difficult, because it was the first time I was playing against him. Obviously I knew what to expect, but the more I play against a player, the more I can analyze what he's doing, because usually their game play repeats itself and it gets easier to shoot a good passing shot or to do what is necessary. It helped me at the end.

Q. I wanted to know how you were contemplating tomorrow's match. You've spent almost seven hours or more than seven hours on court over two matches.

LUCA van ASSCHE: Well, it's going to be very difficult tomorrow against Shelton. He's the fourth player, player No. 4. He's a very aggressive player.

But for the moment, I'm not thinking about tomorrow's match. I'm thinking about recovering physically so that I will feel good tomorrow to play him.

Q. Good evening. Did you feel special expectations before the match, because you're the last Frenchman in the tournament?

LUCA van ASSCHE: Yes, obviously yesterday I was a bit disappointed to be the only one to go to quarterfinals while we were four Frenchmen in the eight. But for me, it's the first time I played that well for a Masters 1000 tournament.

Now, on paper, obviously this was the match where I was favorite, but he's in quarterfinals. He had very good victories to reach this level. He showed it was a great match, so I'm once again very happy about my effort.

And about the French public, it's always very great. They're incredible. They supported me from beginning to end, especially at some points where I felt almost ready to break, and it really helps you, it dynamizes you. It's energizing, and I hope they will continue.