A. RINDERKNECH/F. Marozsan
7-6, 7-6
(In French.)
THE MODERATOR: Well done, Arthur. What are your first impressions of playing on the center court?
ARTHUR RINDERKNECH: Well, it's a nice court to play on. The atmosphere was really nice right from the Monday, second match, and it was pleasant. I was able to play well in the two tiebreaks and have the public behind me. It's a great center court with a great public.
THE MODERATOR: Questions in French.
Q. Well done, Arthur, for qualifying. Can you tell us a little bit about this match? It was a bit complicated. You wanted to do well. Did you have some pressure after the finals in Shanghai?
ARTHUR RINDERKNECH: No, I don't think I had too much pressure. I wanted to do well, but no pressure. It was my first indoor match.
While the other players had the last two weeks playing indoors, for me, it wasn't the case, so I didn't have all the right marks.
But he played well. At one point, he made his first unforced error. He's dangerous. I knew he would be. He's a very talented player. He hits the ball early. He takes risks.
Once again, with the public behind me, the two tiebreaks ended going in my direction, and that's important.
Q. The fact that you didn't go to the last two indoor tournaments, does it mean you feel better? You said the other day that you had to listen to your body. At what point in your career did you understand that you had to do that?
ARTHUR RINDERKNECH: Yes, in the past when I had a nice week, I was maybe too happy. It was real euphoria. Everything was rosy. I felt irresistible. I wanted to play and play again and play again very fast.
And then with Lucas and his experience, we took a step back, and he knows you shouldn't take any unnecessary risk. You have to prepare your tournaments properly and have the right goals and perform as well as possible.
I could have played in Basel. It wasn't very far. But we preferred not to take any risk.
I'm not saying I feel as fresh as I did in January, but I feel I can defend my chances here this week, and I have everything I need to play well.
Q. Tomorrow 11:00 a.m., will you be in the stands in the center court? One word about this match.
ARTHUR RINDERKNECH: No, I have to prepare doubles with Giovanni, so I will be warming up. Maybe Lucas will watch.
Once again, this time I'm the first one to play and he has to follow suit. I prefer it this way, because it was tiring in Shanghai.
Q. Would you say the match against Zverev in Wimbledon was the turning point of your season?
ARTHUR RINDERKNECH: It was a very important moment. Probably the best tennis moment in my career for the moment. Or if it's not, it's one of the top three.
Was it the turning point? Maybe playing against Sinner in Roland was really a great moment. Even though I lost in three sets, I was able to see that I had value as a player. Then several things succeeded step by step. I feel I'm on the right track and I can do what I want to do the way I want to play and with the right people next to me.
Q. The tournament moved this year. Compared to Bercy, what are your impressions here, and how different is it?
ARTHUR RINDERKNECH: It's different, because it will never be the same as Bercy. Bercy was mythical, thanks to the history and what happened, but I guess the public is the same, the same connoisseurs of tennis come to La Defense that went to Bercy, and it's the same tournament, same atmosphere, same colors, same conditions. But obviously it's not the same.
But the arena is beautiful. The center court is beautiful. The music and colors when you come in are beautiful. For us tennis players we cannot but be happy to have these excellent conditions.
Q. You didn't seem bothered by the noise on the other courts?
ARTHUR RINDERKNECH: Well, I don't know. Occasionally you can hear a little thing, but it didn't bother me personally. I don't know. Maybe some will be bothered, but it wasn't my case.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports