
The first Grand Slam adventure of Martín Landaluce concluded on Monday in the first round of the 2025 Australian Open at the hands of local tennis player James McCabe. A match that was decided in three sets where the Spanish player showed the natural inexperience of a 19-year-old with a whole career ahead. Following the battle, the player from Madrid sat down with colleagues from Eurosport to analyze his experience in Melbourne and aims to continue improving to soon claim that victory that this time could not come. These were his impressions.
Defeat against McCabe in the first round
"It was a tough match, my first time playing five sets and I found it a bit challenging to handle. I tried to conserve energy a bit, which caused me to start below where I should have, especially against an opponent who played much better than his ranking suggests. From the beginning, I saw him applying a lot of pressure, which was like a reality check, a wake-up call, making it difficult for me from that moment on. I did have some opportunities later on, but I felt a bit weaker than usual, less competitive. However, this doesn't take away from the work we have been doing, from the qualifying rounds I played, where I won good matches."
The most challenging aspect of playing five sets
"I still have a lot of experience to gain to answer this question well. I believe that you have to conserve energy to some extent, but not the way I did today. I think everything was too rushed, but these matches tend to be slower. Mentally, it requires an effort, of course, but also physically. Perhaps physically, I am not yet prepared to compete in them, but I am working very hard to get closer and soon be ready to win five-set matches. The mental effort means you have to be there all the time, knowing that the match is very long and that everything can change at any moment."
Assessment of his first Grand Slam
"A Grand Slam is incredible, overall. I was pleasantly surprised by the treatment of the players, the variety of places to unwind, focus on a match, or relax. People are very friendly, the food is great, sleeping well, but what I liked the most was being able to share this experience with my family and coach. On the other hand, this is my seventh week away from home because I did my preseason training away, so I was starting to miss home. I don't know if it's a negative point, but I was already eager to return; that might have affected me a bit on the court."
Are you going back home happy?
"I am very happy to leave... The only way I can't be happy after a match is when I don't represent my values or my way of being, my way of playing. Although it's true that today I wasn't able to rise to the occasion and couldn't perform at the level the match required, I am still showing my values, and there's no reason to hang my head. I am doing things very well; getting through the qualifiers of a Grand Slam is very tough, and I am very proud of everything I have done."
This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Landaluce: “Era mi primer partido a cinco sets y me ha costado manejarlo”