00:14Sous-titrage Société Radio-Canada
00:30...how it responds to other people, but I tolerate it pretty well.
00:34I don't remember having any issues with it in the past when I played matches under the heat.
00:40I've always found it quite good for my game.
00:44The ball has more of an effect when you're playing the heat,
00:47and I think it helps my game get a little bit more pop in my shots.
00:52I don't mind it when it's on clay.
00:55I think it's an extra challenge, and I'm mentally ready every single time to face it,
00:58so I don't know how others respond to it, but I just want to make the most out of it
01:04in terms of grinding it out because it's almost, I would describe it, who can withstand it better.
01:12I mean, tennis, of course, comes first, but it almost feels like it comes second
01:16when there's so much heat on the court.
01:19Hi, Stefanos.
01:20Again, about the heat.
01:22Some players said the ball goes faster because of the heat.
01:26Did you feel it as well, and how much of a change does it make to your game?
01:30I think it makes a lot of sense.
01:32Yes, it has an effect on my game, as I said.
01:36I'm a player that likes to play with topspin on clay.
01:39I think it's quite obvious.
01:41I try and use my topspin as effective as I can,
01:45and the heat gives me a little bit of an extra edge to my game.
01:50It allows me to have a heavier ball, a more lively ball,
01:55and I feel like my strengths are amplified in those sort of conditions.
02:02Hey, Stefanos.
02:03You're back on Chatrier today after spending some time on some smaller courts.
02:09Does that open up possibilities for your game
02:11and having more real estate to play with,
02:16and was that an issue for you when you've had periods of playing on smaller courts?
02:21I love playing on courts like Chatrier.
02:23I've had great memories playing on Chatrier,
02:25and I've won a lot of times on that court.
02:28I think it's quite normal when you're not that high in the rankings
02:30to be put in a smaller court that you're not used to playing.
02:35I've had this last year where I played,
02:38I don't even remember, Court 8 or Court 7 or something like that.
02:41I didn't even know where that was.
02:43But, you know, it comes with the ranking.
02:45I mean, I have to win, and I have to do well in tournaments
02:49in order to be playing at the best arenas in the world.
02:51If I'm not delivering to those results,
02:54then I feel like my ranking drops,
02:57and then I kind of have to start from scratch again, build my way off.
03:07And just in terms of the court itself being bigger
03:11and having more real estate to play with,
03:12does that work well for your game?
03:14Do you use that?
03:15I use that, yes.
03:16Does it bring more things into play?
03:18I use it, yes.
03:20It gives you more space, especially on the return of serve.
03:23You can, you feel almost like the court is bigger, even though it isn't.
03:29It just makes you feel like there's more places to play at on the court
03:34when there is such massive real estate of clay.
03:40you kind of feel like, well, it doesn't come down so much,
03:45I feel like, down to the serve.
03:46Like, of course, what I've noticed playing is when I play on smaller courts,
03:51you tend to sit closer to the baseline,
03:55and then it's more serve performance-based
03:59because you feel everything squished and smaller.
04:01So, it does have a different optical illusion when you're playing.
04:09Hi, Stefanos.
04:11Welcome and welcome back to the win.
04:16Thank you.
04:18You may not know, but when you beat Sinner
04:24at the Australian Open 2022,
04:28he thought his game was very limited
04:31because you had much more variety than he had,
04:35and he thought he had to change coach,
04:37and he changed everything.
04:39Did you expect him to do all the progresses that he made
04:46in terms of variety, drop shots, volley, serve, and so on?
04:51And is that also, in a way, not a lesson,
04:56but an advice that you can give to other players,
05:01including yourself?
05:02I mean, to always look for progresses.
05:09If you were to tell me that he was going to be that good as he is now,
05:13it was hard to imagine in that particular moment
05:16that he was going to suddenly pop off the way he did,
05:23winning pretty much everything.
05:25He played great tennis even back then.
05:27He played great tennis.
05:27I just feel like his game wasn't as structured as it is now.
05:34It feels like now it's much more structured,
05:36and he's using definitely much more variation in his game.
05:41His forehand, from what I remember in the past,
05:43used to be a part of his game that wasn't the best,
05:49and now it has become sort of solid from all sides.
05:52There aren't many weaknesses on his game,
05:53and I think that's what makes it difficult for most of us
05:57to play against him.
05:58Like, his serve improved massively.
06:00When I played him, I don't remember him serving that great,
06:02and now he finds his spots.
06:05Not necessarily serves huge with a lot of kilometers per hour,
06:09but he's able to find his spots,
06:11especially on pressure moments, moments that count.
06:14He's always going for a high percentage first serve,
06:17and that gives him a big edge with his game.
06:22Number two?
06:23About you.
06:24About me, yes.
06:25It's inspiring what Yannick is doing,
06:28because it definitely shows you that there's potential for everyone
06:31to up their game and do something more than they think they can.
06:35You always think when you're at your best
06:38that you're kind of getting close to your best version of tennis,
06:42but, you know, having relived that plenty of times in the past,
06:46I've only come to realize that the version that I thought of me back then
06:51actually didn't know what I can actually achieve today.
06:54I've had matches today that my level was not even close to what I've played in the past.
06:59So you can never put a limit to it.
07:02There's always, you always increase the limit.
07:05It's almost like the world record with a 100-meter sprint, you know.
07:08You always thought that no one will be able to run under 10 seconds in a 100-meter race,
07:14but people keep breaking the record all the time.
07:17Usain Bolt was definitely someone that hasn't been broken in a long time.
07:24But I do believe there's a threshold there of someone coming in one day and breaking it.
07:29I do believe in, like, the human biology is possible to push through that as well.
07:37Can you tell me how high it is today, how high it is, how does it play to play,
07:44and in your words, what are the differences between the way playing these teams?
07:51High bounces, spin is very effective, that's what I'm seeing.
07:58Chatrier is always a core that has an extra bit of an effect when you play on it.
08:03I've always played on Chatrier and I've always felt that on that court.
08:06I don't know whether that's the clay amount that they add to it
08:09or whatever court science there is behind it,
08:12but I've always felt like Chatrier has more of a kick to it.
08:16And I also understand why a certain player has dominated on that court for so many years.
08:22It's almost like, it almost, like, complements his game.
08:28So I think the heat always makes a court bouncier.
08:31It makes the clay dry up quicker.
08:33which, you know, a dry court has the tendency to have more of an effect, ultimately.
08:39When we had rain here for a few days in a row in the past in the Roland Garros,
08:44I've always felt like the ball stays lower.
08:47It doesn't penetrate as much throughout the court
08:49and you have the tendency to play longer rallies.
08:52So, yeah, you can definitely see it visually and experience it as a player.
08:57Thank you.
09:03There we go.
09:03Thank you.
09:03Thank you.
09:03Thank you.
09:04Thanks, guys.
09:04Thank you.
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