“You win in five sets (6-3, 6-2, 5-7, 4-6, 6-1 against Stefanos Tsitsipas) while you had match point in the third, does that annoy you or the relief of being in the final erases everything?
There is a bit of both. I was clearly not happy with my game at the end of the third and fourth. But I’m really happy with my state of mind for the duration of the match. Even having lost the third and fourth sets, I couldn’t shake my head that I was the best on the court. I felt comfortable, in control. We must pay tribute to his fighting spirit. He played superb tennis, especially in the fourth when he had to clear break points. However, I had opportunities to break him and finish the match faster, but he is a real fighter. He is one of the best players in the world and he was fighting to play his first Grand Slam final. Of course he had the motivation to turn the game around, and he almost got there. But in the end, he had no more energy. It was there that I took the upper hand, seized the opportunities in the fifth and was able to finish the match in a good way.
You will find Rafael Nadal in the final and you said that playing him at Roland Garros was the greatest possible challenge. Can you expand?
Seems pretty obvious to me, right? He has won this tournament more times than any other player has ever won any other tournament. He’s only lost twice here since the start of his career. Yes, the conditions are different than in May or June and I think that can benefit me as his ball will not bounce over the shoulder as usual. But even taking that into account, it’s “Rafa”, it’s a final and it’s on clay. Playing him the best of five sets in the Roland Garros final, I know what it is. On these courts, I lost most of the matches we played, but I also won one in four sets, in 2015 (in quarters). And I’m going to use that to think about the right tactics. I don’t feel tired. The semi-final was almost four hours (3 h 54), it was a big fight, but I feel good. I will have enough time to recover and to be ready for the final.
You are one of the only two people to have beaten him at Roland Garros, that can help …
I have faced him more than anyone in my career. I think our face-to-face meetings are a record in the history of sport. I no longer have the exact number in mind, but it must be 60 (55 in fact, 29 to 26 in favor of the Serbian). He is definitely my biggest rival. We had so many great matches that it created mutual respect. And we both know that we have to be at our best to hope to beat the other. But we also have enough experience to know how to approach the game. And we are also aware that the conditions are unlike anything we have ever experienced. It will be interesting to see how our games go together. “
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