25 year old Stefanos Tsitsipas wins a 10th consecutive match, beats Dusan Lajovic 5-7, 6-4, 6-2 to reach a 4th final in Barcelona.
Tennisnews.gr spoke to Stefanos Tsitsipas after his qualification to the final of the Barcelona Open and his new comeback from a set down, this time against Dusan Lajovic. The change in his tactics that helped him turn the match around, but also tomorrow's final, where he will be waiting for a different Casper Ruud compared to Monte-Carlo.
"The beginning of the match was different with the 2nd and 3rd set. I think the match started to change at the beginning of the 2nd set. By coming in strong and starting to press with my returns I think I surprised him because I started going for the my shots and not hesitating at all. I started to play more simply and the momentum of the match started to change there. I had some phases where I hit some big shots, mainly with the forehand and I started to play more simply in the sense that I was playing more towards the middle of the court and I didn't try to open the court every time I had the chance. In the beginning of the match I wanted to open the court instead and it cost me. I also started to become predictable in the 1st set, especially on my serve. As I changed my tactics on that, I started to have easier games than the serve", said Tsitsipas to tennisnews.gr, after qualifying for the Barcelona Open final.
The Greek champion didn't start the match well and for the second day in a row he was down a set, but he managed to turn things around and beat Lajovic 5-7, 6-4, 6-2, to get the ticket to the final of Barcelona.
There he will face Casper Ruud, whom he had beaten a week ago, in the Monte-Carlo final. In that match Stefanos had only lost 5 games, but a different match awaits tomorrow.
"I expect him to raise his level. At the moment he is playing better than last week. I have seen his matches here and he is playing very well. I think he will have learned from last week as well and I expect a much tougher match tomorrow, with more rallies, more energy from his side. I'm sure he'll show something different on the pitch. What I have to commit to is to continue with the way I've shown so far and not let anything go. get in my way."
In the press conference he gave in English, Tsitsipas talked about qualifying for the final for the 4th time and the experience that can help him in tomorrow's match: "It feels good to be back in the final. The previous experience I have with finals here helps me with confidence , but also the level of tennis I played here the last few days. I will have an opponent who will be as thirsty as me tomorrow. I hope we will have a good fight out there, like a few days ago."
On how he approaches a final, he said: "It's not every day you play in a final, always in tennis a final means it's a big day. In any sport it's exciting to be in a final, I feel excitement when I step onto the court to play in a final. It's a good opportunity to go out on the court and try to make adjustments as well. It's like a chess game sometimes important to stay in it, be positive and not let myself 'fall', whatever the condition. I've had some very tough games here and I'll try to stay fresh mentally for a big win tomorrow."
The final of the Barcelona Open will take place on Sunday, at 17:00 Greek time (COSMOTE SPORT 6HD).
