Djokovic: "An electric atmosphere like in Davis Cup"

At Roland-Garros,

The curfew and the end of the game behind closed doors

“It's a shame for the tournament crowd to have had this curfew, but we knew it before the game.

We knew that if we approached 11 pm, the stadium would have to be emptied.

I found the atmosphere to be a bit like in Davis Cup, with a lot of fans all around screaming and an electric atmosphere.

I'm happy to have had this experience and to have been able to play in front of an audience in the evening.

It didn't matter to me then to leave the court.

On the contrary, I needed to refocus. "

Matteo berrettini

“The public supported him.

He served very, very well in the third and fourth set.

He was strong.

He was precise.

It was difficult to play against someone like him, because he is a very talented player, who can play well from the baseline.

He's got a lethal forehand, some dropouts, not sure what to expect.

Before, the atmosphere was like the Davis Cup, with people reacting on all points ... It was just electric!

I am happy to have lived this experience of the night-session with the public.

I could have finished earlier, but Matteo is a really very powerful player.

It was based on a very strong and very precise service, very hard to read. ”

His cry of deliverance at the end of the match

“I played against a very difficult player tonight, with the crowd, then the interruption and the crashes.

There was considerable intensity in this game.

I had the feeling that I missed a few possibilities to finish the game in the third set.

I didn't want to give him too many opportunities to dictate the game.

That's why it's been really extremely stressful to be under constant pressure all the time, on my serve, because he's serving so fantastic too.

In the end, that scream was my way of freeing myself from it all. "

Interruption

“We weren't allowed to see our coaches.

We were each alone in our locker room.

We have a 15/20 minute break.

I calmed down, I thought about the tactics.

I have changed myself.

I had a quiet moment, where I found myself.

I tried to think about what to do on the court tactically. I knew the atmosphere on the court would be totally different.

It took a while for both of us to warm up for 3 minutes of warm up.

Coming back from the hiatus, I think I was ready to play better.

I kept him going on his service games.

He had a few break points.

It was tight. ”

The shock against Nadal

“It's a semi-final, which was already anticipated. We find ourselves face to face again.

Last year he largely dominated the final against me.

Obviously conditions will be different on Friday than they were last year.

The quality of my game on gravel over the last few weeks gives me a good feeling, with the feeling that I can win this game.

I hope that I will be able to play at a higher level than that of the first two sets of last year.

We're going to have a nice battle. "

His rivalry with Nadal

“It's not a game like any other. It's the biggest challenge we can have, playing on clay against Nadal, here, where he has had so much success throughout his career. Every time we come face to face, there is that little extra tension. This is why this rivalry between us has been, I think, historic for our sport. I have had the privilege of playing against him so many times. I've been told before, and I've said before that the rivalry against him and Roger made me a better player and allowed me to understand how to improve myself to play tennis to the level where they were when I was. started playing against them. Rafa is probably the biggest rival of my career. ”