Speaker 1: Hi everyone, and welcome to another episode of the Sitdown.
Speaker 1: I'm Matt Trolope, a writer for ozopen dot com.
Speaker 2: And I'm Viv Christian, managing editor of Australian Tennis magazine and.
Speaker 1: Viv why are we sitting down this week with Alex Michelson.
Speaker 2: We're sitting down with Alex Matt because he has had
Speaker 2: a fantastic season in twenty twenty four. He's reached two
Speaker 2: ATP finals, cracked the world's top fifty and he's one
Speaker 2: of the eight young players competing in the ATP next
Speaker 2: Gen Finals this week.
Speaker 1: Yeah, and we were lucky enough to catch Alex just
Speaker 1: a few weeks before he headed off to Jedda. We
Speaker 1: got him when he was in a training week in
Speaker 1: California and we got to meet someone who was He
Speaker 1: was a great talker, he had a really good story,
Speaker 1: he was really generous with his time, and yeah, we
Speaker 1: really enjoyed it and learned a lot about him. So
Speaker 1: we hope you guys do enjoy it too.
Speaker 2: Alex, thank you for joining us on the sit Down.
Speaker 2: It's great that you're joining us so I think from
Speaker 2: your home in California, it must be nice to have
Speaker 2: a week or so off from the tour.
Speaker 3: Yeah, yeah, did.
Speaker 4: Okay in the last term and over it METS and
Speaker 4: then I took about ten days off and yeah today
Speaker 4: it has been today's my second day back training. So
Speaker 4: I had to get going pretty quick again because I
Speaker 4: got to go to Saudi Arabia pretty soon, so I
Speaker 4: had to uh had to get started quickly.
Speaker 2: It's been an incredible season for you. You've peaked just
Speaker 2: outside the top forty and I think you're currently sitting
Speaker 2: at number forty two. What's been the highlight for you
Speaker 2: this year.
Speaker 4: It's been a good season, a lot of a lot
Speaker 4: of ups and downs. I know that's a very cliche
Speaker 4: thing to say, but I mean at the clay the
Speaker 4: clay season, I barely wont any matches.
Speaker 3: It was.
Speaker 4: It was tough for me. Even in the grass season,
Speaker 4: which I like grass, I didn't do great. And then
Speaker 4: I came back over to America Final than Newport. That
Speaker 4: was that was a highlight. Defending my points and highlighting
Speaker 4: defending my points. And finally was because I final Master
Speaker 4: as well, so that that was that was really good
Speaker 4: for the confidence as well. And then I kind of
Speaker 4: took that had a great American summer record, DC got
Speaker 4: the finals of doubles and Sincy. That was a lot
Speaker 4: of fun. Yeah, I think just the whole American swing
Speaker 4: for me was was was great. I was in Europe
Speaker 4: for three months, so coming back home and playing, playing
Speaker 4: in front of the home crowd was nice to do
Speaker 4: for a while for sure.
Speaker 5: Amazing.
Speaker 1: And so as you said, you're about to head to
Speaker 1: jet Up for the next Gen Final. So this is
Speaker 1: the second time you're going, but you, I guess, arrive
Speaker 1: in a bit of a different place in your career
Speaker 1: where it was all new last year and you were
Speaker 1: just inside the top hundred. Now you're where you are
Speaker 1: and you'll be the second set. So yeah, what does
Speaker 1: it mean to qualify for that again? And what will
Speaker 1: you take into into this experience?
Speaker 4: Yeah, well, well we'll obvious hit the experience of playing
Speaker 4: last year. It's going to help me out this year
Speaker 4: because last year I was you, I just turned prone
Speaker 4: like August, and it all kind of came very quickly
Speaker 4: at me and I wasn't ready to perform at a
Speaker 4: stage like that. And I think now you know, got
Speaker 4: a whole year of experience, well a whole year like
Speaker 4: on the main tour to use this experience, and when
Speaker 4: I go to Saturday with this year, so I can
Speaker 4: only do better. I went owing through last year. I
Speaker 4: can only do better this time around. So I'm really
Speaker 4: looking forward to going back and giving it my all.
Speaker 4: I have some unfitished busits over there for sure.
Speaker 1: Awesome, and it's got a pretty impressing on a roll
Speaker 1: of champions. So like Sinner El Karez sits a pass,
Speaker 1: they've all won it before. What would it mean for
Speaker 1: you for you to join them potentially.
Speaker 4: Yeah, that would be He'll be absolutely epic. I mean,
Speaker 4: those guys are all stick at tennis. I mean that
Speaker 4: would be awesome. If I got to put my name
Speaker 4: on that list with them, that would be That means
Speaker 4: I'm doing something right. So I think that would just
Speaker 4: the opposode on honor if I can to put my
Speaker 4: name on that list.
Speaker 1: It's also pretty amazing the names that are kind of
Speaker 1: around you on the Race to Jedda, so that you
Speaker 1: know the twenty one and under list. It's led by
Speaker 1: Art Fees and there's also Yaka Mensig, Jerry Shang Lernati
Speaker 1: and Luca n ash Dua Fonseca like and you, that's
Speaker 1: a pretty cool crop of players that have gotten lots
Speaker 1: of fans excited.
Speaker 5: What do you think of this current generation that you're
Speaker 5: coming up with.
Speaker 3: Yeah, I mean everyone you said is is very good.
Speaker 4: I haven't played Fees yet, but obviously I think he's
Speaker 4: what a couple of five hundreds of series playing sick.
Speaker 4: I played Mensik and Jerry I played him in junior's
Speaker 4: actually and on the I haven't played Mensik on the
Speaker 4: main con tour, but I've played. I've played them both
Speaker 4: in juniors plenty of times when they were very, very good.
Speaker 3: And then I just train. I train with Murner.
Speaker 4: I just got done training with them Urdier today, So
Speaker 4: you know that'll be that'll be fun to play that
Speaker 4: and play that. But that'll be interesting if we get
Speaker 4: to play each other, so well, we'll see. But yeah,
Speaker 4: I'm super happy he did that. He's doing great as well.
Speaker 4: You know, he's very close friend for me, so to
Speaker 4: see him doing great is amazing. And then fan Seca
Speaker 4: absolutely waxed me in Madrid stuff.
Speaker 3: Yeah, I know, I know you can play. So I mean,
Speaker 3: he's gonna be He's gonna be sick.
Speaker 4: He rids me of like a like a mini sitter,
Speaker 4: like he the way he hits the ball is kind
Speaker 4: of the say I put them both. The way they
Speaker 4: hit the ball is just you don't. You don't come
Speaker 4: by that very often. So yeah, I mean this, uh,
Speaker 4: this group of this group of guys is.
Speaker 3: Uh is good.
Speaker 4: It's gonna be tough to to do well this year,
Speaker 4: for sure, but I'm looking forward to it.
Speaker 1: Do you see that group of players as your main
Speaker 1: rivals or are you looking at like other people to
Speaker 1: like compare yourself against all that you're targeting like a
Speaker 1: good record against. So I'm not sure how you approach that.
Speaker 4: I mean, I don't really think of like two many
Speaker 4: people as my rivals just because I haven't played too
Speaker 4: many people more than like twice, you know. I mean,
Speaker 4: I guess you could say to my arrivals just because
Speaker 4: we're close in age, and I'll probably be seeing plenty
Speaker 4: of these guys for the next ten years, and I'll
Speaker 4: probably play them all, you know, I'll probably play.
Speaker 3: Them all like seven times at least.
Speaker 4: So I mean I think now, no, but I think
Speaker 4: in the future that plenty of them will be my rivals.
Speaker 3: Yeah, cool, Alex.
Speaker 2: It's obviously a pretty exciting time for American tennis right now.
Speaker 2: Are you close to to many of the other American
Speaker 2: players on.
Speaker 4: Tour, Well, yeah, I would say so. I mean closer
Speaker 4: with them than anyone else. You know, Fritz is also
Speaker 4: from Sokow, so I, you know, hit with them a
Speaker 4: little bit when I was like when I was a
Speaker 4: kid and say, just being around I was really cool.
Speaker 4: And now I was four in the world, which is
Speaker 4: which is amazing. I'm glad he's doing so good. And
Speaker 4: then I'm definitely I played doubles with a bunch of
Speaker 4: very like Corda and Mackie. Those guys are great that
Speaker 4: they're all also again and you got Ben who is
Speaker 4: playing great. You got tommyho's playing great, you got Francis.
Speaker 4: All those guys are kind of knocking on the door
Speaker 4: for for top ten. They're all like the top fifteen.
Speaker 4: So I think we're our depth is very good right
Speaker 4: now as well. We got someone in the top five
Speaker 4: and we have very good depth. I'm like the sixth
Speaker 4: ranks American need and I'm forty two in the world.
Speaker 4: That's not too bad. I think American tennis is doing
Speaker 4: great right now.
Speaker 2: There's actually five men in the world's top twenty five.
Speaker 2: Five American men. I should say, how inspiring is that
Speaker 2: for you?
Speaker 4: Yeah, I mean to see all those guys, you know,
Speaker 4: all of my so Americans doing that great, I mean,
Speaker 4: shows I can do it too, right' That's kind of
Speaker 4: the whole point of seeing someone from your country or
Speaker 4: your area, you know they do that well and you
Speaker 4: kind of look at that and draw inspiration from that.
Speaker 3: I think it's great.
Speaker 2: Yeah, speaking of American tennis, you're currently coached by Robbie Janeprie,
Speaker 2: I believe. So what is that like and what's he
Speaker 2: brought to your game?
Speaker 4: Yeah, well, just to be able to draw, you know,
Speaker 4: from someone else's experience. I mean he sent me with
Speaker 4: us open once and he got to I think fourteen
Speaker 4: or fifteen in the world. So be able to draw
Speaker 4: from experience from someone like that is great. And we've
Speaker 4: worked on, you know, becoming a little more offensive because
Speaker 4: I'm a pretty big guy. On like, I gotta gotta
Speaker 4: play I feel like I move okay and I can
Speaker 4: play defense good, but I definitely need to improve in
Speaker 4: the offense because I'm a big guy and I need
Speaker 4: to I need to play some more offense. And he's
Speaker 4: been helping me with that, and yeah, it's been great.
Speaker 3: I've done. I've done pretty well with him, so I'm excited. Yeah.
Speaker 1: Has that come naturally, that kind of change where you're
Speaker 1: like forcing yourself to be offensive where you're maybe your
Speaker 1: instinct is to be a bit more defensive.
Speaker 4: I mean, I definitely have to think about it, you know,
Speaker 4: just you know, consciously think about it all the time.
Speaker 4: At least That's what I've been trying to do in
Speaker 4: practice the last couple of days and you know, months.
Speaker 4: But I feel like sometimes I'm I can drop back
Speaker 4: behind the baseline really easily and just like make a
Speaker 4: lot of balls and against the guy, like the top guys,
Speaker 4: it doesn't work because they can all, you know, hammer
Speaker 4: you for that. So I think just knowing that and
Speaker 4: being able to, you know, play offense, and I feel
Speaker 4: like I can play offense pretty good, it comes naturally.
Speaker 4: I just I just I feel like a defense comes
Speaker 4: a little more naturally. So I think just just having
Speaker 4: that offensive mindset is the most important thing.
Speaker 5: We've got options, which is good.
Speaker 3: Yeah. Yeah.
Speaker 5: Yeah.
Speaker 1: In terms of how you actually got started in tennis,
Speaker 1: so we understand that both of your parents played college tennis.
Speaker 1: Is that kind of how you got introduced to the
Speaker 1: sport and.
Speaker 5: It is what you are to die.
Speaker 4: Yeah, I mean, I actually don't remember starting to I
Speaker 4: was like three years old, like, and my parents that
Speaker 4: kind of gave me your racket. And I was sitting
Speaker 4: backhands in the garage. All I want to do is
Speaker 4: sit back ends entirely, which that's still what I want
Speaker 4: to do, is sit back ends. But yeah, so I
Speaker 4: was doing that until I was like six years old,
Speaker 4: and then of mom was like, all right, like we
Speaker 4: got to start into four ends and I was like.
Speaker 3: No, but yeah, I hit with him.
Speaker 4: My mom a lot if I didn't, you know, I
Speaker 4: ate with her like four or five times a week.
Speaker 4: She she was She made a lot of balls and
Speaker 4: we hit a lot of balls, and that definitely gave
Speaker 4: me a great date for where I'm at right now.
Speaker 4: I definitely wouldn't be here without without her. My dad
Speaker 4: helped you, but he was working, so I didn't, you know,
Speaker 4: play as much with as much as I did with
Speaker 4: my mom. But my parents helped me out tremendously. And
Speaker 4: there's not a chance I'd be here without them because
Speaker 4: they always introduced it and train me when I was younger.
Speaker 4: So I mean, there's no way I would be here
Speaker 4: without them.
Speaker 1: And you also considered potentially the college route yourself. But
Speaker 1: as you said, you turned pro relatively recently, so what
Speaker 1: you know that that's a decision that a lot of
Speaker 1: players have to grapple with, and there's you know, bene
Speaker 1: pros and cons to both.
Speaker 5: Where how did you land where you landed?
Speaker 4: Yeah, well the decision I kind of made it to
Speaker 4: where it was impossible to go to college. So last
Speaker 4: year I was I started the year at six hundred
Speaker 4: and I was, you know, obviously still supposed to go
Speaker 4: to college.
Speaker 3: And then July rules around, I'm like two fifty, and.
Speaker 4: Then I win the Slander in Chicago and then Final Newport,
Speaker 4: and then I was one forty and I had a
Speaker 4: card at a walk current of the US Open. So
Speaker 4: at that point I was a no brainer to turn pro.
Speaker 4: And you know, that's what I wanted to do, really
Speaker 4: about it. I'm not a big school day, so kind
Speaker 4: of clor got in and to go to school, obviously,
Speaker 4: I think college house. We've been up blast that team
Speaker 4: environment sounds sounds amazing, But yeah, going on tours, you know,
Speaker 4: it's always like a child that dreamed I never really
Speaker 4: thought would become true. It was never in the cards
Speaker 4: for you growing up at all. I wasn't like one
Speaker 4: of these amazing players. So I think just being able
Speaker 4: to experience all this is just an absolute dream come true.
Speaker 5: Awesome.
Speaker 1: We read a really interesting piece It was about this
Speaker 1: time last year in tennis dot com by Joel Drucker,
Speaker 1: and so I think he spent a bit of time
Speaker 1: in California with you, watching you train. He mentioned that
Speaker 1: you hit with Lerner a lot, and one of your
Speaker 1: coaches described your game as jumbled, which was an interesting terminology.
Speaker 1: But yeah, I guess it sounds like it's kind of
Speaker 1: evolved in the twelve months since then, so kind of yeah,
Speaker 1: and you alluded to it was a bit of a
Speaker 1: blend of offense and defense. How would you describe your
Speaker 1: game for someone that actually hasn't seen you play tennis?
Speaker 5: And maybe have you like modeled it after someone?
Speaker 4: No, I don't think I modeled that for anyone, But
Speaker 4: I mean a year ago, my game was definitely jumbled.
Speaker 4: I like I was like six ' four, My stur
Speaker 4: was not good. My foreh end was like average, and
Speaker 4: like back it was like.
Speaker 3: Really good and like I.
Speaker 4: Just I had it was kind of all over the
Speaker 4: place with in terms of like how good you know,
Speaker 4: certain things were, and I feel like I've leveled it
Speaker 4: out and I've got a lot of things better. But
Speaker 4: I think I would describe my game as like all
Speaker 4: core game. I feel like I can do everything. I
Speaker 4: can come to the net, I can play offense, play defense.
Speaker 4: You know, I feel like I can. I can kind
Speaker 4: of do it all. I just need to improve, you know,
Speaker 4: all all the aspects. But I feel like I can.
Speaker 3: I can do it. I would say I have an
Speaker 3: aw core game.
Speaker 1: And we also read that in the last year you've
Speaker 1: all you've grown an extra ine, which you know, what,
Speaker 1: what does that mean. I'm not sure if that's true,
Speaker 1: but you said you were six four maybe yeah, but
Speaker 1: I mean that does create an adjustment if you're dealing
Speaker 1: with like, you know, longer levers or bigger heart or whatever,
Speaker 1: when you you know, a year or two ago, you
Speaker 1: weren't so like, Yeah, what is that kind of adjustment
Speaker 1: being like and what's it? What's the advantage of being
Speaker 1: one of the bigger guys on tour.
Speaker 4: Yeah, I feel like I've always had pretty long levers.
Speaker 4: I think, you know, that helps a lot with one thing.
Speaker 4: I think and helps a lot with is return, I
Speaker 4: can just get my racking on more balls where you know,
Speaker 4: other guys maybe couldn't because their arms are as long
Speaker 4: like I have very long arms, which which which helps.
Speaker 3: It helps me out a lot. It helps Then the
Speaker 3: doubles cord too, That's one of those that I think,
Speaker 3: I look kay devils.
Speaker 4: But yeah, it's definitely it's definitely tough to move when
Speaker 4: you're you know, six three six four. But I feel
Speaker 4: like I've always had pretty long levers, so I I've
Speaker 4: I wasn't there, you know, like short, and then all
Speaker 4: the stuff grew. So I feel like I've gotten used to,
Speaker 4: you know, and running around and bringing with the with
Speaker 4: the long arms and lovelake. So that hasn't been like
Speaker 4: a big justine for me, but I haven't sorry.
Speaker 3: I have been working on my movement a lot un
Speaker 3: the last year.
Speaker 1: Okay, and your autols listed this guy on one face
Speaker 1: and so we just wanted, what what do you love
Speaker 1: about his game?
Speaker 4: Well, I mean, the guy is one of the best
Speaker 4: athletes ever play TENNA. I mean the guy's so quick
Speaker 4: and jumps so high. I mean, it was always it
Speaker 4: was always fun to watch him playing like growning out.
Speaker 4: That was just like whenever he's on tee, I would
Speaker 4: like stop doing my homework or whatever it was, and
Speaker 4: like I'd stay up laid to watch and it was
Speaker 4: just absolutely sick. And then I got to meet him,
Speaker 4: and like I've here with him a couple of times.
Speaker 4: It's just absolutely amazing.
Speaker 3: Yeah, he was my definitely my favorite to watch for sure.
Speaker 5: Yeah, does he know that? Have you told him?
Speaker 3: I don't think so. I'm a little tighter.
Speaker 4: I I definitely have to tell him because I don't
Speaker 4: know how long he's got He's like thirty seven and
Speaker 4: thirty eight.
Speaker 3: I don't know how much lawer he's got left, So
Speaker 3: I gotta I definitely have to tell him that.
Speaker 1: Yeah, And also you alluded to before that you know,
Speaker 1: it's a dream come true being on the Pro Tour
Speaker 1: and this is an amazing opportunity for you. But I
Speaker 1: guess when new players come onto the tour it's an adjustment,
Speaker 1: Like it's it's a grind and it's a long season
Speaker 1: and all of that. So how have you kind of
Speaker 1: juggled that? What do you love about it? What have
Speaker 1: you found challenging or has it mostly been great?
Speaker 3: It's been pretty good.
Speaker 4: I'd say the most challenging part was the clay season
Speaker 4: in Europe, just because I'm from the US and we
Speaker 4: don't really have any clay, and especially in southern California,
Speaker 4: we got no clay out here.
Speaker 3: It's too dry to have clay.
Speaker 4: So I never, you know, played on a growing up,
Speaker 4: and then I went to Europe and I won like
Speaker 4: three match, three or four matches in the span of
Speaker 4: like two and a half months.
Speaker 3: So that was mentally tough. But I like traveling, I
Speaker 3: like I.
Speaker 4: Like, I like putting into hard work when I'm when
Speaker 4: I'm out events, even with like I would lose early
Speaker 4: and I'd be with my finished train the next couple
Speaker 4: of days, just absolutely grinding, and I enjoyed that. I
Speaker 4: think that was a great growth period for me, both
Speaker 4: physically and mentally. But yeah, I love the I love
Speaker 4: the tour. It's it's it's a lot of fun. I
Speaker 4: like traveling and seeing the world and something I thought
Speaker 4: I would do, so yeah, I love it.
Speaker 2: Cool. You've already made three ATP finals and in such
Speaker 2: a young career. You must be incredibly proud of that achievement.
Speaker 4: Yeah, I got three before I turned folio. I was
Speaker 4: that was that was pretty sick.
Speaker 3: I didn't.
Speaker 4: I never in a million years did I think that
Speaker 4: would happen. But yeah, I'm very proud of myself. I've
Speaker 4: put in a lot of hard work in a lot,
Speaker 4: especially the last like four years. I didn't take tennis
Speaker 4: like I mean, it's like a seriously, but I never,
Speaker 4: you know, like considered this route until like, you know,
Speaker 4: probably three years ago when I when I figured that
Speaker 4: maybe I could do this, and.
Speaker 3: I started working really hard about four years ago.
Speaker 4: So just to just knowing all the work I put in,
Speaker 4: you know, behind the scenes, like when no one's really
Speaker 4: seeing and knowing that and making a couple.
Speaker 3: Of finals is just yeah, it feels. It feels great.
Speaker 2: Two of those three finals have come on grass at Newport,
Speaker 2: and you also had success in the Wimbledon Boys doubles
Speaker 2: event a couple of years ago. What is it about
Speaker 2: grass that brings out your best game?
Speaker 4: Well, I think it helps my serve out a little more,
Speaker 4: because my serve, especially end of years, was not good.
Speaker 4: But the grass definitely make it, you know, shoot through
Speaker 4: the core a little more and that helps you out.
Speaker 4: And I feel like I returned pretty well. So I
Speaker 4: feel like I can get looks on return. And then
Speaker 4: also my serve is not coming back as much because
Speaker 4: it's on grass, so that's great. And also I feel like,
Speaker 4: especially in Newport, like my backhand just would like doesn't
Speaker 4: come off the ground, and I feel like it's it's
Speaker 4: tough for guys to it was tough for guys to
Speaker 4: manage managers out there, and I also played the greatest.
Speaker 3: I love Newports. It's a great place. So I think, yeah,
Speaker 3: I'm actually really bad at they're getting rid of that.
Speaker 3: I don't know what I'm gonna do, but but yeah,
Speaker 3: I mean.
Speaker 4: It's absolutely sick and yeah, I'm glad I can make
Speaker 4: the final in the last two times it had it that.
Speaker 2: Wimbledon final a couple of years ago. Did that change
Speaker 2: the course of your career at all, which is how
Speaker 2: you felt about the future.
Speaker 4: Not really just because it was doubles, It wasn't like
Speaker 4: I mean like that was like the best one one
Speaker 4: in my life because that was one of my best friends.
Speaker 3: I grew up with him here in so cal Uh.
Speaker 4: Playing winning with cords and that was an unbelievable time
Speaker 4: I could I wish I could go back and relive
Speaker 4: that we saved mass points in the semis like we're
Speaker 4: just absolutely just start. That was like the happiest ever
Speaker 4: been after winning a test term and also it's Wimberlin
Speaker 4: like it was. It was absolutely awesome. But I don't
Speaker 4: think it changed the course of my, like, you know,
Speaker 4: my career because just because it was doubles and like
Speaker 4: I lost first round of singles that that I wasn't
Speaker 4: you know, doing great and singles. And I don't think
Speaker 4: it changed changed too much.
Speaker 3: It definitely gave me a little more like a little
Speaker 3: more confidence though, and I think that.
Speaker 2: Helps for sure. Well, speaking of confidence, this here, you've
Speaker 2: had wins over four top twenty players. There's been Alex
Speaker 2: Deminor Taylor, Fritz Stefano sits a pass and he be
Speaker 2: her cats. Was was one of those your biggest win?
Speaker 2: Or do you remember one of those as your best win?
Speaker 4: When I played Demonor and Los Carloss, I absolutely tried
Speaker 4: like I couldn't have played any better. I just I
Speaker 4: went out there. I was seeing the ball like it
Speaker 4: was a great fruit, Like I couldn't miss a ball.
Speaker 3: Like I was just treeing out of my mind.
Speaker 4: That was in terms of level, like my actual level
Speaker 4: like was not where I played way above my actual
Speaker 4: level that day for sure. That was sick and then
Speaker 4: beating Fritz is probably those those are the two because
Speaker 4: I mean you and I was like nine in the
Speaker 4: world that when I played him in Mexico, and then
Speaker 4: Fritz was I think he was top ten when I
Speaker 4: played him. I'm not one hundred percent sure I think
Speaker 4: he was, but I played pretty good and then I gagged.
Speaker 3: I gagged it away.
Speaker 4: In the second I was at five to three and
Speaker 4: then had like four match points and then all of
Speaker 4: a sudden it was five all, and then I came
Speaker 4: back and like only lost one more point from there.
Speaker 4: That was a good mental effort for me to uh
Speaker 4: to take him down, so that those are definitelyated to
Speaker 4: uh two best wins of the year for me.
Speaker 5: We watched The Demon A one in the Office. Do
Speaker 5: you remember view we did?
Speaker 3: Yeah?
Speaker 1: It was now timesigme. We were watching Office, Yeah, because
Speaker 1: it was joke I played.
Speaker 2: I just yeah, it was an incredible performance. I was
Speaker 2: also in Shanghai recently where I saw you compete against
Speaker 2: Novak Djokovic, who took him to two tight tie break sets.
Speaker 2: What's it like to compete against the legend like Novak.
Speaker 4: Yeah, I mean being on the other side, and that
Speaker 4: is again something else I never thought would happen. And
Speaker 4: uh like when I was just like warm me up,
Speaker 4: I was like, yeah, I mean this is the goat.
Speaker 4: I'm playing the goat, and it's it's pretty intimidating. You know,
Speaker 4: that guy's got twenty four slams, like he's got a
Speaker 4: gold medal. He's like, he doesn't even like he's won
Speaker 4: everything there is to win, Like what else do you
Speaker 4: need to win? Like why are you here? And I
Speaker 4: play I'm drying. I'm drawing him second round like now.
Speaker 4: But it was it was absolute incredible And I.
Speaker 3: Got up three to zero in the first set in
Speaker 3: like nine minutes, and I.
Speaker 4: Was like and then I kind of realized, oh maybe
Speaker 4: I can win, and then I got a little tight,
Speaker 4: but yeah, playing it was an incredible experience. I get
Speaker 4: to tell my grandkids that I get got to playing
Speaker 4: at novet Chak.
Speaker 3: Which just absolutely sick. And then I had some chance.
Speaker 4: I had to said the second set, I should have
Speaker 4: should have won that second set. But I mean he's,
Speaker 4: you know, the most clutched guy that ever played the sport.
Speaker 4: So and also knowing that the back of my head
Speaker 4: makes makes.
Speaker 3: Me even more tight. So it's yeah.
Speaker 4: I was definitely a crazy experience, and I think I
Speaker 4: learned a lot from that one.
Speaker 2: Do you feel like you lift against some of the
Speaker 2: bigger names, lift like you play better?
Speaker 3: Yeah?
Speaker 4: Yeah, I feel like I have. I feel like I
Speaker 4: don't always. I played against the Verev in the third
Speaker 4: round Astra. I didn't play great there, but I feel
Speaker 4: like I I have. I feel like almost like half
Speaker 4: the time I do have time I don't because you know,
Speaker 4: you have to beat these guys.
Speaker 3: You know, you have to lift.
Speaker 4: Your level like before I played you know, Demon r
Speaker 4: Fritz or Sissy Pass like, you know, you have to
Speaker 4: play well to beat any of these guys. So and
Speaker 4: then going out and executing it like feels great. And
Speaker 4: then sometimes you go out there and you don't execute it,
Speaker 4: and then the guy will just pummel you. So I
Speaker 4: feel like it's kind of dependent on the match for me.
Speaker 1: Sure, we were going to ask you about the Io
Speaker 1: third round run because it's your best Grand Slam results
Speaker 1: so far, and you beat uryla Hechker as well to
Speaker 1: reach there.
Speaker 5: He was a seed like you, How was it?
Speaker 3: You know?
Speaker 1: How do you look at that achievement and was that
Speaker 1: was that a bit of a like a barrier bar
Speaker 1: couldn't getting maybe further into a slam like that?
Speaker 3: Yeah, yeah, of course. I mean I was like on
Speaker 3: the edge.
Speaker 4: I was like ninety ninety five before that event, or
Speaker 4: like ninety two or something like that. I remember going
Speaker 4: into that week and played US Train Wildcard first round,
Speaker 4: crazy crowd. I got through that one, which just felt great,
Speaker 4: and then I played pretty well against Lash. I remember
Speaker 4: I played a poor first set, and then after that
Speaker 4: I just like locked in and I I and there
Speaker 4: was a couple of rain delays which helped me, and
Speaker 4: I I just played really really well and then being
Speaker 4: able to win that one that was incredible, and uh
Speaker 4: zero was lost in the third rounder.
Speaker 3: The second rounder, I remember, I.
Speaker 4: Almost got to play like I als got to play
Speaker 4: client in the third round, which has been cool. I mean,
Speaker 4: but uh players Vere von rod Laver was was incredible,
Speaker 4: incredible experience. That was my first time on like a
Speaker 4: really good court like that, and I feel like most
Speaker 4: of the crowd was like for me. I think they
Speaker 4: wanted the underdog, and I made a close second set.
Speaker 4: I had like one of the sickest shots in my
Speaker 4: life and the second set breakers ACA a line pass.
Speaker 3: But I was that was an incredible experience.
Speaker 4: I really hope I get to play a Rod Labor
Speaker 4: again this time, hopefully not to that means I'll play
Speaker 4: like Yannick or Carlos.
Speaker 3: I don't walk, but maybe like like third round again.
Speaker 4: But yeah, I was an absolutely, absolutely incredible experience playing rather.
Speaker 5: Yeah, it's a fantastic cold.
Speaker 2: It sounds like you enjoyed the crowds in Australia. How
Speaker 2: do they compare to so say US crowds.
Speaker 3: They're definitely more rowdy.
Speaker 4: When I played the Australian Walker, and I mean that
Speaker 4: was my first time again, I was felt like I
Speaker 4: was really really away, like I felt like I was
Speaker 4: in an away game ever not one person and that
Speaker 4: crowd was cheered for me, and uh it was tough.
Speaker 4: And I feel like I had that a lot this
Speaker 4: year where the crowd was against me, which which I've
Speaker 4: come to love. I I enjoy it now, but I
Speaker 4: remember in that first round of Australia, I was like,
Speaker 4: I didn't love it.
Speaker 3: It made it even more tight. But now but now
Speaker 3: I absolutely love it.
Speaker 4: But yeah, I think I maybe I earned their respect
Speaker 4: after I did, and then in the second round it
Speaker 4: that was pretty even for me go and then I
Speaker 4: felt like it was more for me, but yeah, it.
Speaker 3: Was, it was. It was really cool. It was really
Speaker 3: cool to experience that.
Speaker 4: I think experiencing that and then seeing they're definitely the
Speaker 4: most rowdy like Australia, maybe the French too, but the
Speaker 4: Australians are crazy rowdy.
Speaker 3: It was it was nice outas here is fun.
Speaker 5: We love it.
Speaker 1: We're famous for loving and underdogs. So that'll that will
Speaker 1: help explain why you experience love.
Speaker 5: Yeah, love it.
Speaker 1: So I guess when you said, like, you know, play
Speaker 1: on rod La Arena if you you know you would
Speaker 1: like to avoid Yanni and Carlos and people like that early.
Speaker 1: You can do that by getting a Grand Slam seat.
Speaker 1: And you're actually quite close to being in that bracket.
Speaker 1: What is the now that you've kind of had a
Speaker 1: bit of time on tour and you know the level
Speaker 1: and you see what those top players do, what is
Speaker 1: the difference from going from where you are now at
Speaker 1: forty to like that top thirty two bracket or cracking
Speaker 1: the top twenty. Like it's such small margins at the top,
Speaker 1: so like, what do you think is the key to
Speaker 1: cracking those next barriers.
Speaker 4: I think for me, one of the main things is
Speaker 4: going to be getting a better surf because I'm six
Speaker 4: four and I don't get a ton of free points
Speaker 4: off of surf, whereas most other guys that in my
Speaker 4: he do get a lot of free points on surf.
Speaker 4: So I think that is a is a bit component.
Speaker 4: Also playing a little more offensive because against these guys
Speaker 4: are not going to give it to you, got to
Speaker 4: take it from them if you want to win. So
Speaker 4: I feel like those are the two main things that
Speaker 4: are that are that need to happen for me. And
Speaker 4: I also think the mental I really kind to believe
Speaker 4: that I can be all these guys when I when
Speaker 4: I see them in draw.
Speaker 3: So I think those those three things for sure, is.
Speaker 5: That belief starting to come.
Speaker 3: Yeah, it is.
Speaker 4: I I usually go on the court and no matter
Speaker 4: who I'm playing, I tell myself that I could win,
Speaker 4: at least I can. I try to convince myself of
Speaker 4: that because if you because if you don't, if you
Speaker 4: go in you think you're gonna lose, that you're gonna lose.
Speaker 3: So that's what I tell myself.
Speaker 4: I definitely tell myself I can win every time I
Speaker 4: walk out there.
Speaker 5: Awesome.
Speaker 1: We've spent a lot of these chat talking about kind
Speaker 1: of like you as a tennis player, your career so far,
Speaker 1: your game. What would you like people to know about you,
Speaker 1: maybe like off the court as you as a person.
Speaker 4: I mean, I'm crazy competitive on the court, and I'm
Speaker 4: also crazy competitive off the court for whatever it is,
Speaker 4: like you, like, I played basketball, it's id a crazy competitive.
Speaker 4: I play video games, like, I get really pissed the
Speaker 4: video games, way more piss than I do with tennis.
Speaker 4: So I'm crazy competitive with with everything I do. But
Speaker 4: I'm also like, I mean, I hate to say this said,
Speaker 4: but I'm kind of worry.
Speaker 3: I don't do a lot.
Speaker 4: Like I go to practice and at least when I'm home,
Speaker 4: I go to practice most of the day. I come back,
Speaker 4: I relax, I you know, play video games, hang out
Speaker 4: friends and family, and go and do it again the
Speaker 4: next day. I feel like I kind of live at
Speaker 4: like groundhod day. It's just everything I repeat. So not
Speaker 4: a whole lot going on over here.
Speaker 1: Well, maybe you're under selling yourself because we have we
Speaker 1: were reading in preparation for these interview and we discover
Speaker 1: that you collect coins and you read about history, which
Speaker 1: are pretty hice things like what what how did they start?
Speaker 1: And what kind of like history do you delve into.
Speaker 4: Oh, the American history, I love it. I love it
Speaker 4: in America. I love I love America. So just reading
Speaker 4: about the history and you know how how we came
Speaker 4: to be is pretty cool. I don't know, like I
Speaker 4: got into it and I was like crazy young, and
Speaker 4: I like it's always kind of stuck with it. And
Speaker 4: my my grandfather also fought in World War two and
Speaker 4: my other grandfather fought in the Vietnam War. So I
Speaker 4: think having that, you know, connections and definitely made me, uh,
Speaker 4: you know, I want to learn more about that.
Speaker 3: And then I also for the coins.
Speaker 4: I never I haven't collected coins since I was like thirteen,
Speaker 4: but I do have like I do have some like
Speaker 4: some cool underlike clause that's for sure. I haven't opened
Speaker 4: that thing in my years, but it's I definitely have
Speaker 4: some some coins that are probably worth a couple of
Speaker 4: grand now just because they're so old and they're in
Speaker 4: good condition too, so.
Speaker 3: And I was I kind of got there from my brother.
Speaker 3: I remember my brother started doing that when I was
Speaker 3: erk and I just kind of fall in.
Speaker 5: So that must have been an old story we read.
Speaker 5: But that's cool. It could have could have it could
Speaker 5: have some value.
Speaker 1: Now, Alex, this has been so great, You've been really
Speaker 1: generous with your time. We just wanted to close by asking, yeah,
Speaker 1: like when will we see you down in Australia twenty
Speaker 1: twenty five, like the Australian summer and kind of what
Speaker 1: are your what are your goals going into a new
Speaker 1: season which you've started preparing for.
Speaker 4: Yeah, well, I will be in Brisbane the first threek.
Speaker 4: I'm gonna play Brisbane and then and then obviously Melbourne.
Speaker 4: Looking forward to getting down there and start started all
Speaker 4: over again a year.
Speaker 3: Two goals for next year. I don't really want to
Speaker 3: say that.
Speaker 4: I like keeping it to myself for the most part,
Speaker 4: but I do have some goals I would like to accomplish.
Speaker 3: And yeah, I just got to put in.
Speaker 4: The work in this next couple of weeks before before
Speaker 4: next gen and try to get after it.
Speaker 2: Amazing, fantastic, That sounds sounds very exciting.
Speaker 3: Yeah, I can't wait to get down to Australia.
Speaker 4: I love I love the course down there and it
Speaker 4: rise like Australia's lost silver country to America, so that's
Speaker 4: probably why I like it down there.
Speaker 1: I think there's definitely a bit of a crossover between
Speaker 1: like southern California and Australia. Like the Preachers, everyone feels
Speaker 1: really comfortable, so that's that's good.
Speaker 5: Will you have to come before Christmas though, No.
Speaker 3: I'm actually gonna go home after Saturday.
Speaker 4: I'm gonna go home back to California for a couple
Speaker 4: of days, part of four five days to spend it
Speaker 4: with my.
Speaker 3: Family, and then I will and then I will head
Speaker 3: down to Britain.
Speaker 2: Fantastic. We look forward to seeing you come this summer,
Speaker 2: so thank you so much for your time today.
Speaker 3: Yeah, I'll find see you guys in Melbourne.
Speaker 5: Now, Yeah you will?
Speaker 1: You will?
Speaker 5: Yeah for sure, definitely.
Speaker 3: Oh cool.
Speaker 2: Well, I really do hope that we have a chance
Speaker 2: to talk to Alex in person after such a great interview.
Speaker 3: Map.
Speaker 1: Yeah, it would be great to see him, I guess
Speaker 1: before he comes to Australia, which is super exciting. We'll
Speaker 1: see I think from Wednesday when the Next Gen Finals starts.
Speaker 1: How he progresses. And I really enjoyed the part of
Speaker 1: the chat where he talked about kind of his contemporaries
Speaker 1: and rivals that are in that field. It's a pretty
Speaker 1: amazing group that are coming up. And that reference to
Speaker 1: Juel Fonseca hitting a ball like Yannick Sinner like, there's
Speaker 1: a lot of exciting stuff about this generation to look
Speaker 1: forward to. And so yeah, I'm looking forward to seeing
Speaker 1: both Alex and all of them when they come to
Speaker 1: come to Melbourne January.
Speaker 2: Yeah, and Alex is actually the number two seed at
Speaker 2: the tournament and he has he's come so far since
Speaker 2: he played that event last year as well, So I
Speaker 2: think we'll see a lot of progress for him, and
Speaker 2: you know who knows he We've got Yannick Sinners to
Speaker 2: find us, sits a Pass, Carlos Alcoraza, some of the
Speaker 2: names that are won that tournament. So let's see who
Speaker 2: comes next.
Speaker 1: Well, thanks again for joining us for this episode, and
Speaker 1: we'll be back next week with another episode of The
Speaker 1: sit Down when we bring you our interview with Sumitt Nogal.
Speaker 1: But in the meantime, you can join John and Brie
Speaker 1: and the team for this Thursday's episode of The AO
Speaker 1: Show Weekly.
Speaker 2: Please remember to subscribe, rate and review. See you next week,
Speaker 2: mat see you then, bib