Ce dimanche, Tommy Paul s'est imposé en quatre sets lors du premier tour de Roland-Garros 2025, (5)6-7, 6-2, 6-3, 6-1 contre Elmer Moller. En conférence de presse, l'Américain est revenu sur l'histoire avec son pick-up. Lors du tournoi de Rome, ce dernier a vécu une mésaventure inattendue : son pick-up Ford F-150 a été saisi à son domicile en Floride en raison de paiements manqués. Ce n'est qu'en consultant les caméras de sécurité de sa maison qu'il a découvert que son véhicule avait été remorqué, alors qu'il ne restait qu'environ 800 à 900 dollars à régler sur le prêt.
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00:00BNP Paribas, partenaire des plus belles histoires de Roland-Garros, aux côtés des ramasseurs de balles depuis plus de 50 ans.
00:17Amin, congrats on the win. If you can walk us through today, what do you think was the key?
00:25Yeah, I mean, it was a weird match from the jump with the wind and the rain on and off, and it being a little colder.
00:34But yeah, I mean, I think he came out playing well. He came out ready to go and started a little slow and then also a little nervous.
00:41And after that first set, I felt like I was able to loosen up and really start playing my game a bit better.
00:52Hi. What do you think of Muller and what do you think of his backhand?
01:00I mean, he came out, like I said, he came out playing pretty well. Obviously a very different kind of player, I guess.
01:08I mean, he's running around to hit backhands, which you don't see very often, and especially running around to hit him inside out, which was kind of strange, but he did it very well.
01:23And yeah, I mean, from the ground, he stuck with me pretty well. I mean, I thought it was an interesting match, for sure.
01:32Were you a bit surprised?
01:33Not, I mean, not really. I saw like a couple points that he played against Fonseca in Madrid. So I kind of knew what he plays like.
01:50So you mentioned there about the different conditions. Can you just talk through all of the different ones you played in today?
01:56Because it felt like there was a bit of everything. You mentioned the wind, there was rain, then the sun came out. How was that?
02:00Yeah, I mean, it's very different when it's raining to when the sun comes out for a second, it warms up, and you feel like everything speeds up.
02:11And then on top of that, they're kind of expecting rain, so they're not watering the court.
02:16And then it's like when the wind blows, it's like a dust storm in your eyes.
02:20So, I mean, it's definitely challenging, different, but I'm not sure what the weather's looking like the rest of this week.
02:28So I guess we'll see.
02:29Is this tournament one of the most challenging in that regard for kind of weather just changing all the time and conditions changing?
02:37Yeah, I mean, I'm not sure. I know last year there was so much rain, and obviously today rain.
02:45So, I mean, in the past two years, you can say that for sure.
02:47Well played today, Tommy.
02:55Thank you.
02:56Question about the art of sliding on clay. It seems like you're one of the guys who's very comfortable with it.
03:01Can you talk me through a little bit about, like, the decision-making process, when to slide, how to slide,
03:06and do you feel that it gives you a real solid advantage on this surface compared to some of the players maybe who don't slide as well?
03:13I mean, it's definitely an advantage to be able to, you know, move confidently and slide confidently.
03:21I mean, there's times to slide and hit, and there's times to hit and slide.
03:25And being able to make those decisions in split seconds is very important.
03:31I mean, movement in general in this sport is almost everything, you know.
03:36It's so important. You've got to be able to move as well as possible.
03:40So, yeah, I mean, it definitely could help me.
03:43I don't know that I've always been the best mover on clay, but I definitely feel like I've improved a ton.
03:52Back to the conditions topic and changing weather and all of that.
03:57How do you view all of that? Is that an annoyance? Is it a challenge you're okay with?
04:05Does it not affect your game that much, or is that something you're taking into account even during a match as things might change here?
04:16You know, sometimes it can be annoying. Sometimes it doesn't bother me too much.
04:20I guess it depends on what kind of mood I'm in. I think I started the match today a little moody.
04:26And, I mean, it got the best of me there in the first set, and then was able to relax and settle into the match.
04:33And all that stuff didn't matter as much anymore.
04:36Just to follow up on what I asked you at pre-tournament about Ethan Quinn, because he knows his draw now.
04:40It's Dimitrov playing first round. Just your thoughts. You know both those guys well.
04:43Yeah.
04:44How do you think about that? How do you see that one shaking out from what you know about Ethan?
04:47I mean, love Ethan. I think he's playing awesome tennis.
04:54I mean, just experience-wise, you would probably give Grigor the advantage there.
05:00But, I mean, I think it's going to be a great match.
05:03I think Ethan is going to surprise some people with his level.
05:08And maybe come out on top, I'm not sure.
05:10But it should be a good one.
05:13And I think Ethan's playing great tennis in general, and especially well on clay right now.
05:18I'm very impressed with him.
05:21Thank you.
05:22Okay.
05:23Oh, great. Well done.
05:25Can I ask you about your last match in Rome, and sort of, like, if that affected your thinking at all about how to play on clay,
05:32and what it's like to play Yannick on clay, and what you need to do in order to get to, like, that level,
05:39or something, you know, that can get you to the winning set, and how he approaches the surface?
05:47You know, I think Yannick has said that clay is his least favorite surface, but he's obviously pretty good on everything.
05:59You know, there were some things that he did that exposed me a little bit.
06:05I don't really want to go too deep into it, because I don't want to give it all away.
06:08But, I mean, he made some changes in the match that were, I mean, great, whether it was clay core tennis or hard core tennis or grass.
06:17He made adjustments, and I failed to adjust as well as he did, and he picked up his level of time.
06:24I think he won, like, nine or ten games in a row, which, I mean, that hurts in the middle of a match.
06:30And, I mean, somebody earlier in the week asked me, you know, like, how good do you feel after winning the first set 6-1?
06:38And I told him I felt great for five minutes, and then, like, I lost nine games in a row.
06:43So, I didn't get to live with that very long.
06:47Tommy, I'm curious about your story from Rome.
06:50How on earth did the F-150 truck come to be repossessed, and is it back in your possession now?
06:57We got it back. We got it back.
06:58Can you explain the background to that a little?
07:00Yeah, no, I just changed banking and forgot to set up auto pay on my truck and missed, I think it was, like, three payments, and they came and took it.
07:12I didn't know it happened like that.
07:14You know, I didn't know how quick they would come and grab it in, like, in the middle of the night.
07:18But now I'm, like, watching all these repo shows where they come in and swoop trucks at, like, one in the morning.
07:26So, I mean, it's definitely a funny experience.
07:29And to be in Europe while it happened is even crazier, but we did get it back.
07:34This is not my question, actually, but you posted the video on your Instagram.
07:38Did you, like, did you find out through the video, or did you, like, check the CCTV after?
07:44No.
07:45So, yeah, my trainer, he was still in Boca at the time, and he was calling me, and he was like,
07:52hey, like, can you check your camera to see if you have any packages?
07:55Because, like, when I have packages, he'll go and pick them up and put them in my house.
07:58And I looked at the, you know, at the camera to see if there were packages, and there were no packages and no truck.
08:05So, and then I'm, like, you know, going back and scrolling and seeing what happened to my truck.
08:11And I was, like, what that was going on?
08:14Like, there's a tow truck coming and taking my car.
08:17I thought it was stolen at first because I didn't, my first thought wasn't, like, you know, auto pay.
08:24But, yeah, ended up being repoed.
08:28Sorry, that wasn't actually my question.
08:30Yes, some players have been talking about the weird, like, experiences they've had with anti-doping.
08:36Like, Taylor was saying that, you know, one time they came for him while he was really jet-lagged,
08:42and he couldn't get a sample, so he was taken, like, in the room, taking, like, a nap every 10 minutes while the guy's sitting there.
08:48And some players have said, like, that, you know, someone's sitting with the guy while they're watching football, waiting for the sample.
08:54Have you had any experiences like that?
08:56Not really.
08:58I mean, we've all had experiences where we can't really, you know, go to the bathroom.
09:06But, I mean, yeah, they've definitely waited around longer than I'm sure they would like to.
09:11But most of our time slots are 6 in the morning or early, so we know that we're home.
09:18And I'm not, like, the best morning person, so they've probably dealt with some, you know, a little attitude for me.
09:25But that's about it.
09:30Tommy, I just want to know if you and the other American men, Ben, Taylor, other guys,
09:34do you feel like you've closed a gap on the rest of the world in terms of European has had so much dominance in the past?
09:40And it's obvious that in the last two years you guys have made a great leap.
09:43And also, Taylor's trip to the U.S. Open final, is that something that sticks with a lot of you guys as maybe a prime motivator,
09:50thinking that that could be me too and there's bigger things on the horizon?
09:53Yeah, it's a good question.
09:55I mean, I think we haven't closed the gap, obviously, because none of us have, you know, won a slam.
10:03And, you know, there's still a lot of really good Europeans ranked ahead of us.
10:08So I wouldn't say the gap is closed, but I think over the past six years or so, we've definitely made it smaller.
10:17And absolutely, in terms of Fritz making the finals of the Open, we were all pumped to see that, you know.
10:22I mean, it motivates us.
10:23We've been hearing our whole lives how U.S. tennis, like, we haven't had a Grand Slam champion in so long.
10:30So to have him just in the finals there was huge for U.S. tennis, huge for him, and frankly, for all of us in terms of belief.
10:41I mean, seeing him there, like, I think that we all believe we can be there, and I think it's great for the sport.
