Here’s the Donald Young French Open 2014 Interview Transcript following win over Feliciano Lopez 6-3, 7-6, 7-3. The young American is through to the third round in Paris
Q. It seems a little bit out of nowhere, you haven’t played too much on clay, haven’t had much success here. Now you’re in the third round, played a quality player straight sets. Talk a little bit about what’s going on.
DONALD YOUNG: Yeah, it feels good. I have been playing well all year, but I didn’t play much on clay, so it wasn’t like I had a chance to maybe lose a little confidence on clay or know what’s playing well and what’s not playing well. I mean, I played last week and lost in the quallies. The guy played really well, kind of slapped me off the court.
I didn’t take it too negative because it was my first tournament on clay, I won a couple of matches, that was the goal.
To beat a quality player like Feliciano is awesome as well. And definitely to be in the third round is something I’ve never done. I have actually never won a match outside of the U.S. on red clay. So to win two here at the French Open, it means a lot.
Q. How much do you actually play on clay? I mean, in the U.S. there is a push to build more clay courts and to practice more on it. But how much are you actually exposed to it regularly?
DONALD YOUNG: Green clay, it’s what we have. It’s definitely not the same. It’s not close.
I played three challengers on green clay in the States, but I don’t get to play on it often. I kind of try to stay away from it, to be honest.
When I get on it, it’s all right. It just takes a little time to get used to it. The green is definitely different from the red, and I prefer the red to the green.
And we don’t have that at home except for Houston. It’s not exactly the same as this.
Q. Is part of doing better here is you feel more comfortable in bigger setting, bigger matches, you get up for it more?
DONALD YOUNG: Yeah, actually, I like the big stage a little more than the challengers and everywhere else. I feel like I play better against higher level players.
But, yeah, I just feel like I put the work in and I’m playing well. I’m just letting my game flow and do what it does.
