Stefanos Tsitsipas emphasized that Zapata was a difficult opponent in the “16” of the Madrid tennis tournament and that he did not have the required time on the clay, he referred to his backhand in the second set and analyzed his next opponent, Germanos Struff.
Analytically: “He was a dangerous opponent, he came out strong in some of my service games, I didn’t have great percentages, if you compare it to the streak of 39 first serves I had. I wish I was more accurate and gave myself more time to react.
It’s not easy when you play against Spaniards who know the surface, I think his intensity was impressive, especially when I broke him. But then I took my time and concentrated on each ball individually. It was chaotic at first, the picture wasn’t clear.”
He was also asked about an impressive backhand down the line that he pulled off towards the end of the match. “It’s like the home run in baseball, that’s how you feel with the one-handed backhand. I am happy that I sent the ball accurately. There were times when the ball came deep and you would have expected a diagonal strike, but I sent the ball straight. It felt good, it’s something I’m working on.”
He will play Jan-Leonard Struff in the quarter-finals on Thursday. “He is a dangerous player, he goes up to the net, he attacks. I know what I’m up against, good preparation is important with players like him. I’m looking forward to the battle.”
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