Melbourne (AFP)
Beaten Wednesday in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open, Rafael Nadal felt that he had "not had a bad match" and wanted to give all the credit of his victory to Dominic Thiem: "congratulations to him ".
QUESTION: What do you remember from this match?
ANSWER: "It was a very good match. I think it was high level tennis. I think Thiem played very well. He was very aggressive, he played very good shots. Even from difficult areas , he was capable of making incredible shots. Nothing to say, just played well to him. "
Q: Is there anything you would have liked to do differently?
A: "Yes, winning the tie-breaks. But that's how it is, sometimes things don't go the way you want. I think I didn't make a good tie-break in the first set. In the second, I came back to the game but he played with the right determination. He always put one more ball in difficult areas for me. I think he played very well. He plays with a lot of energy , aggressiveness and determination. So congratulations to him. Honestly, I didn't have a bad game. I gave myself a chance until the last point. The balls got really heavy as we went "He is younger. He is very fast. With those heavy balls, it is sometimes complicated to make winning shots. He has a lot of power so he is able to make these magnificent shots in difficult positions."
Q: Were you frustrated, pissed off at yourself?
A: "Honestly, no. Even in difficult times ... I know how hard it is to lose two tie-breaks, after 2h30 or 2h40 against a player whom you know will not weaken physically. Even under these conditions, I continued to give everything in the third set and in the fourth. But no, I was neither frustrated nor nervous at all. I just tried to do my best on each point. "
Comments gathered at a press conference
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