World No. 15 Andrey Rublev discussed his upcoming third-round match at Roland Garros against Arthur Fils. The players have a 1:1 head-to-head record.
Asked about his previous loss to Fils in Monte Carlo and how he plans to use that experience in his preparation with his coaching team, including Marat Safin:
“I don`t know yet,” Rublev responded. “I know he`s having a great season and playing at the level of the top players; he had a great match against Alcaraz. I personally feel better now than I did in Monte Carlo, and I`m playing better. I haven`t played against French players on a central court here before, so we`ll see how it goes for this first time.”
Questioned about their agreement with Marat Safin for the clay season and if there are plans for the future:
“I want to continue,” Rublev said. “However, it`s clear he won`t be a full-time coach because he doesn`t want that. I know he likes to live by his own schedule, whereas coaching requires your schedule to adapt entirely to tournaments and training. He values his freedom: if he has five days available to come and train, that`s great, but then he might need another five days to be by himself.”
