N. DJOKOVIC/Buyunchaokete
4-6, 7-6, 6-2
THE MODERATOR: Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the press conference of Buyunchaokete.
English questions, please.
Q. Can you talk about just how you saw that match and where do you think things shifted in the second set? Was it his adjustment or your adjustment that shifted the match?
BUYUNCHAOKETE: I don't know. Right now I just feel I'm empty. I don't know what he doing. He just doing so well. I feel after like two hours, actually I'm tired. I'm little bit tired. I feel my level, it drop a bit.
I feel it's nothing for him. He just start. He just get warm. The return is unreal. Like my serve doesn't work anymore. Everything is coming back so deep. I have no chance.
Then I just feel like a lot of pressure because the ball is always coming back. I have to do more, then more and more, then sometimes force it.
In the end I make the double-fault. I feel the court too small for me. He's everywhere, he doesn't miss, he doesn't give the free point. I mean, that's how he play.
Today I am accept. Just congrats to him.
THE MODERATOR: Questions in Chinese.
Q. In this three-hour match, what gave you the energy to continue? Were there any changes in your mentality?
BUYUNCHAOKETE: To be honest, I'm pretty empty. I'm feeling empty now. I am shocked by him. This is a 40-year-old man I'm facing. In more than two hours, there's no decline in his energy. I'm a 25-year-old, but I'm exhausted. My level dropped, but he was just starting. He was just warming up. I am speechless.
I really value this opportunity because I do not have that many opportunities to face him. I've been playing for three years on the tour, and that was my first time playing with Djokovic.
I was fighting point by point. Overall I think it was a really high-quality match. This is his tennis, his style, why he is the G.O.A.T., why he was able to defeat Federer, Nadal. It all makes sense.
Q. Before this match you said something, when facing Djokovic you are not trying to learn from him, but you are trying to learn something after the match. You are turning it into something, a very tangible plan, you're implementing this plan. What is your biggest takeaway from the match? Did you find the gap between you and Djokovic? Are you getting closer or getting further away from the top star in this industry?
BUYUNCHAOKETE: This is a very deep question.
In the second set, honestly I was feeling very close to victory and I could see that he was tired at that moment in the second set. I accepted at the end of the second set.
At the beginning of the third set he really raised his level. He read my mind very clearly. He always put the ball where I wasn't very comfortable with.
In the second set you could see from the score I was very close to victory. At the beginning of the third set I was broken twice, then I got further away from victory.
Playing such top players, it's not that I didn't have a chance. I would simply withdraw from a match like this if I do not think I have the possibility to win. I would be irresponsible for myself as well as my team. On one day when you see that I am not on the court, that means I see no possibility to win.
Q. Djokovic praised your performance. In the US Open your performance. Top eight in Hangzhou. Here against Djokovic. Talk about your performance in the last three months, talk about your goals at the end of the season.
BUYUNCHAOKETE: My biggest goal wasn't accomplished today (smiling).
From my plan, first half of the year to the grass, I wanted to keep my energy in the US Open as well as the Asian Swing. My energy was kept very good. I put a lot of energy here in the Asian Swing.
Unfortunately before the US Open I was injured for three weeks. I missed Montreal and DC hard court matches. Luckily before the US Open I was able to recover.
It was consistent with my preparation plan. When your energy, level of play is there, you can endure it, you can feel that you can enjoy the matches instead of struggling during the matches. This is really consistent with my plan as well as the support from my team.
In this week I have prepared very well in my physicality, in my strategy, in my mentality. In the US Open and in Hangzhou as well as Beijing I was able to perform well.
Looking ahead I think the goal today, to be honest, there were feelings, emotions in this match. That was it.
Q. The atmosphere was quite special today. Uncommon that the crowd was actually supporting your opponent. Was this affecting your performance today or you were relieved because he is the G.O.A.T., he deserves the cheers?
BUYUNCHAOKETE: Of course he has committed so much to this industry, he has done so much for this industry, put tennis on a higher level. The number of Grand Slams he has won, he is No. 1 in history. Of course he deserves respect.
This is very common what happened tonight. It's not only for the Chinese player. When he plays in the U.S. or Europe, it's probably the same. He deserves all the credit.
I was mentally prepared for the atmosphere today. It wasn't affecting me at all. I was really into the match. I thought he deserved this. Nothing to complain on my side.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports