"I hate more than anything losing in quarterfinals and semifinals" - Taylor Fritz downcast after failing to defend his Indian Wells title
Taylor Fritz's hopes of defending his title at Indian Wells went up in smoke after he was defeated 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 by Jannik Sinner in the quarterfinals on Thursday (March 16).
Fritz and Sinner went toe-to-toe in what was a high-quality encounter. However, it was the Italian's power-hitting that proved to be the difference in the end.
In his post-match press conference, Fritz stated his dislike for losing in the latter stages of tournaments but emphasized the need to "move on."
"I hate losing in quarterfinals and semifinals probably more than I hate losing in like the first and second round of tournaments. But it happens. Just gotta move on," a disappointed Fritz said.
The American elaborated further, stating that a quarterfinal or semifinal loss doesn't pay off in terms of points and rankings.
"I hate more than anything losing in quarterfinals and semifinals of tournaments. You do all the work, and then do all the work of winning like three, four matches, and then don't really get the payoff or like the points and the ranking," he said.
"The way the rankings, the system works is it rewards better for, you know, lose first round three weeks in a row then just win a title than consistently win a couple of matches and lose in the quarterfinals and semifinals like a couple weeks in a row. It's way better to just go big and win the tournament," he added
"What matters is the race and how I'm going to finish this year" - Taylor Fritz
Taylor Fritz is keen to move on from his heartbreaking exit at Indian Wells.
In his presser, the American also spoke of the need to get back on track at the Miami Masters, with an eye on qualifying for the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin.
"Back to keep it going in Miami, because what really matters is the race and how I'm going to finish this year," Fritz said.
The Miami Masters will be played from March 19—April 2. Fritz fell at the Round-of-16 stage of the tournament last season against Miomir Kecmanovic.