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2024 US Open Champion Post-Match Interview: Cinemartic
Written by Willito
21 Sep'24 - 08:46

Cinemartic wins his third Grand Slam of the year, 8th Grand Slam of his career and 2nd title at the 2024 US Open. After the 2 hour match, we were able to catch an interview with the current world number #1.

After a stellar year at the grand slam level, Cinemartic ends his season with yet another title. Winning 3 out of the 4 titles of the year, he solidifies his position as the undisputed #1, and possible Full Ace Tennis G.O.A.T. He has shown complete dominance of the tour with an astonishing 44 titles to his name which include: 8 Grand Slams, 11 ITST World Tour 1000's, 14 ITST World Tour 500's, 9 ITST World Tour 250's, and 1 ITST World Tour Finals.  

He has shown time and time again that the best champions find a way to win even in the toughest situations. This year alone, he came back at the Australian Open Final from 2 sets to 0 down to win in 5, and won this 5 set battle at the US Open after saving a match point.

Here to comment more on this match, the man himself:

Q: Congratulations on an amazing match Cine, and yet another Grand Slam title. Please give us your overall thoughts on the final.

A: First of all, congratulations to Mohd for making yet another slam final, he has won 8 titles this year already which is quite a breakthrough and I can see him finishing the year with the most titles won in the entire field (maybe tied with me, who knows). His fighting spirit has been amazing since late 2023 and it’s great to see his many improvements game wise and also mentally wise. As for the match itself, I strongly feel it might have been the best grand slam match I’ve ever played, maybe tied with the QF against Richie in AO23 and the SF against TennisGameplay in AO22, but the overall dramaturgy of that match is even crazier imo. Winning a slam after a 2 hours match and a MP save followed by the best tie break of my career level wise is the best gift this game can give. I think I could have done better here and there of course, I gave too many space in some of the breaks I gave but overall I couldn’t keep up with the rhythm Mohd was imposing in these moments so props to him for making that grueling match exciting until the end.

Q: You played 2 amazing 5 setters vs Mohd in 2 Grand Slam Finals this year. The Australian Open Final in which you came back from 2 sets down to win in 5, and the US Open Final in which you won the epic 5 set thriller while saving a match point. Reflecting on these matches, which one stands out for you?

A: The latter surely stands out for me as I didn’t expect we would have two monstruous battles the same year in GS and I expected even less that one to surpass the first one in intensity and big drama. The overall scenario also makes it stand out as Mohd lost some level as soon as I got the first break in our AO match and what remained of the match felt more one sided in a way, even tho we got some epic rallies near the end, while in the USO match the level was quite even until the tb which felt like a sudden liberation. I like how the AO match backed me into a corner and forced me to get my best level from the 3rd set but I think I like even more how the quality stayed the same for 5 consecutive sets in the USO match so I definitely pick that one.

Q: You won 3 out of the 4 Grand Slams this year and have already accumulated 9 titles to this year. What keeps you motivated to keep competing for the biggest titles?

A: As I said in previous interviews, I never compartmentalize the tournaments I play, I’m always here to win whatever I take part in and my goal is always to win everything, so my motivation is the same would it be for big titles or more minor titles. That being said the only thing that motivates me is me enjoying the game now. I think it is currently in the best state it has ever been: the roster seems more balanced than it ever was to me, the updates from ks have been pitch perfect, etc… I have tried TopSpin 2K25 and had very big goals at first, saying I was going to win at least an edition of Roland Garros in there too, but the game disgusted me so much I literally withdrew from it maybe 2 weeks after setting these goals and never regretted it while I thought my fighting spirit would draw me into participating in a game I didn’t enjoy fully. But I now realize it’s not possible and the main thing that keeps me playing is my love of Full Ace, nothing more (apart from my humongous ego of course).

Q: You faced a match point during that match and played a 40-shot rally. What was going through your mind during this important point?

A: I would love to say I was confident and everything considering the experience I have in that game and my faith in my clutch attitude but I was honestly thinking midpoint “ok there’s literally 90% chance I’m losing it right now” considering how Mohd switched again at that moment of the match and started to play his best again for a few points. When that kind of momentum switch happens in this kind of match, I’m aware it’s usually game over. So I’m even more proud to have survived that. I was able to think that, which can seem pretty defeatist, and at the same time get as locked in as I could to stay in there, I can tell you I was sweating really hard defending some of these big shots, maybe more than I have ever had to.

Q: You said you "felt relief after winning the first point of the supertiebreaker and just went for it after". Were there situations in the important matches that you've played this year where you felt nervous?

A: Actually, I tend to get less and less nervous as time flies, surely because of the experience I’ve, the faith I’ve in my abilities and other factors, I’d say I get more angry than I get nervous. But the other side of the coin of the experience is also a downside: experience and big results improve my confidence, but they also make me feel when I’m really in danger, and that deep awareness, recognizing scenarios where I’ve actually lost, can be even more paralyzing than just “not knowing” sometimes. But I feel I can deal with it quite well most of the times. Still there are moments where I lose control, for example in my QF against Leon in Monte Carlo where the match slipped during the 2nd set, same against Mohd in the SF of the Olympics. I don’t know if I could put it on nervousness but there are some moments when even all the experience in the world can’t prevent these defeats from happening and you see them coming inexorably while you feel you’re playing at a good level and yeah, during these there are some points where some kind of nervousness comes back in the equation, like “wtf is happening here”. But overall the nervousness is pretty weak when I’m really locked in in my match, I’ve still some apprehensions before the match and I usually feel relief when I can actually play, I’m rarely “trembling” when I’m playing let’s say, my mind manages to be fully focused on the inputs which explains why I’ve all these good clutch moments, I’m never really picturing myself winning and going “oh my god I must absolutely make that picture come true”, it’s more like a diffuse feeling I’m going to win whatever happens which drives me.

Q: You made a weird choice when choosing you character for Wimbledon this year, with Diego Schwartzman. Now that you've won the US Open, do you regret making that choice and if you could go back in time would go with another character to be able to hold all 4 slams? If so, who would you have gone with? If not, why?

A: Absolutely not. Of course, picking Schwartzman is not the easiest way to make your service game a cakewalk but I think he is perfectly able to bring one to victory. You (Willito) were just too good in the match I lost and you winning the Olympics gold afterwards proved it. So, I have absolutely no regrets.

Q: After having this much success, what are your plans for the rest of the season?

A: I guess at least winning one more M1000 and the ATP Finals, winning the Laver Cup with team Europe, then winning the best tournament of the year, the Big Titles Championships in December [Laughs]. I also hope we can get back some big players for the rest of the season and that initiative of yours with these interviews is a great way of generating some hype so thank you for that.

Q: You played an epic five setter against Cesar at the Quarter-Final Stage, tell us about that match and how much it made you believe you could win your 8th Grand Slam title here at the US Open

A: I was actually surprised by Cesar in that match, if I’m being completely honest (the honesty includes a big dose of cockiness here gotta say) I didn’t expect to struggle so much in that match and I think Cesar gave his best performance ever here, at least in our match up. I saw myself lose a couple of times in there and I guess struggling so much made me tougher for my SF and the final and made me understand again that I had to stay focus from A to Z, an obvious fact which one tends to forget sometimes. It made me question my abilities with Nadal a bit but also made me focus even more to counterbalance that bad feeling I had acquired with him, so I wouldn’t say it made me believe I could win the GS at first, but at least it put me in the best conditions to do so, I guess becoming humbler and working hard again to overcome difficulties. 

Thanks for answering all our questions Cine, and we wish you the best in the rest of the season! See you soon!

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