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Friday, June 9, 2006
Roland Garros Semifinal
By Roland Garros Official Site
R. FEDERER/D. Nalbandian 3-6, 6-4, 5-2 (Retired)
An interview with: ROGER FEDERER
Q. There were so many amazing
twists and turns in the match. The point you played, the forehand in
the corner, which turned the game around really ‑‑ ROGER FEDERER: There was a few in the corner (laughing). Q. The crosscourt one in the 3‑1 game really set you going. ROGER FEDERER: Yeah, yeah. Q. Did you need something like that really to get you back into the match? ROGER
FEDERER: Well, I thought somehow I have to find a way to get obviously
into the match because I was not playing well and he was playing the
way he was supposed to in the wind, you know, not making any errors and
so forth. I just couldn't get the ball into play. I was shocked, but...
So I knew that I had to ‑‑ something had to happen. That it took a shot
like that, that's quite interesting. I can't pull off those shots on a
consistent basis. But it's good. They give you a little bit of
‑ I don't know ‑ tailwind maybe, I don't know. They give you like
something extra. They get you going. That's exactly what I needed at
that point. Q. How much of a bonus is it to have the early finish at this late stage of a championship? ROGER
FEDERER: Not important at all, I think. Important is just that we
finish today, I think, you know, both matches. I'm coming into this
semifinal so relaxed physically that no matter how tough the match
would have been today, with a day rest tomorrow and the finals, the
last match here, the French Open, I knew it was not gonna be a problem. So being here now or an hour later doesn't make a difference. Q. And you feel fresh going into the final? ROGER FEDERER: I think that's key here at the French Open, that you come such a long way and you feel pretty good. So one thing's for sure, I won't lose because I'm tired. Q. How do you keep your nerve and composure when you make a start like that? ROGER
FEDERER: Well, I was just very disappointed. I couldn't explain, you
know, why I had such a bad start. I mean, the start wasn't that bad. I
mean, the first couple games I was playing all right and then all of a
sudden, you know, he pulled away and I couldn't create anything
anymore, you know. I couldn't keep the ball in play. That's definitely
got something to do with the long history I've had with him, you know,
maybe the tough matches in the beginning. I was just trying to
get myself going, you know. He was playing well. It was windy. It was
tough conditions after all. So thank God that he didn't make two sets
to love, because I think that second set obviously was the turnaround
for me. Q. Were you surprised the aggressive way Nalbandian started the match? Usually, he's not like that. ROGER
FEDERER: No, I mean, I know him so well by now that I expected him to
play very well. I think, you know, conditions were different than the
last few days, so I think we both had to adjust to that a little bit. But
I just felt like he was way more solid and feeling much better, you
know, off the baseline than I was. That was the big difference in the
beginning. Q. Coming into the tournament, are you sitting
where you expected to be sitting on the Friday, feeling rested, fit and
in ready for the final? ROGER FEDERER: I was hoping I would have the opportunity to win my first French Open.
The opportunity's only when you reach the final, I think. Quarters,
semis, it's all nice and stuff, but you want to go out there on the
Sunday where if something like this happens with David,
that you're there, you're the one that can take advantage. I'm not
hoping for that, but at least you created yourself an opportunity.
That's exactly what I've done this week. So little bit over the
expectations because I think my goal was to reach at least the semis
again. I've surpassed that, so that's fantastic for me. Q.
Today we saw a couple of shots from you that are hard to describe they
were so amazing. Can you tell us about when you ran back and hit the
ball sort of in between your legs and it went past Nalbandian? ROGER
FEDERER: Didn't go through the legs, you know. Faked it (laughter). No,
it's thanks to some ‑‑ it's all paying off, my squash over the years
with my father early on and, you know... I don't know. It came
out automatically. But maybe through squash, who knows. I enjoy the
sport. Yeah, helped me out in the semifinals of the French Open, that's not bad (smiling). Q. People have been clamoring for a Nadal‑Federer
final here. Did that put any extra pressure on you? Did you write it
off in your own mind as it's just too much to ask of you to get there? ROGER FEDERER: I think Rome and Monte‑Carlo
showed that we were sort of best players on clay this season, and that
I could be expected, you know. Because not only are we No. 1 and No. 2
in the world, but also, let's say the best two on clay right now. It's
not like you're expecting some guys ranked much lower to make finals.
We can cope with the pressure. I think for me, it was maybe little
easier than for Nadal. He's not there yet. But I was
always playing ahead of him so I could never ‑‑ I didn't have to bother
what he was doing because I could really focus on my own game. Yeah, so, I mean, I've come so far. Like I said before, it is a little bit of a surprise to me always when I can back up Grand Slam results like this. Now we'll see if he makes. It would be great. Q. Which guy that you've played so far this tournament scared you the most going in? ROGER FEDERER: Into the match? Q. Before the match. Who was the guy you feared, maybe could give you the most problems? ROGER FEDERER: I was not particularly confident against Berdych somehow. That was my feeling. Q. Last week you were saying that you can't call it a rivalry with Nadal
because it's so one‑sided so far in terms of results. What would you
have to do to make it less one‑sided? How will you have to go about it?
ROGER FEDERER: No changes now. I mean, that would be wrong. So we'll see first how he does. But if that happens, I'm feeling good enough and knowing that I'm playing well. Got to play like I did in Rome, as usual, aggressive, patient and everything. That seemed that was the way to go at it. We'll speak to Tony and see what he thinks now. We have another few weeks in the legs on clay, if I have another option to play against him. No, I think it would be fantastic if he wins because to play in our first Grand Slam final against each other, I think that's quite special, you know, No. 1 and No. 2 in the world. Q.
You're one win away from something very special, not just in tennis but
also in all sports. Have you ever sat down and thought to yourself,
considered how significant an achievement it would be across sport? ROGER FEDERER: Yes, I have (smiling). Q. What are you thinking when you're thinking it? ROGER
FEDERER: I think it would be pretty nice. It's actually pretty nice
that many of the players root for me actually in the locker room. They
would obviously like to see me, too, sort of do it, because I think
(indiscernible), you got to let me win in the finals. But it would be
something quite incredible. Hasn't happened for such a long time. To
have created this opportunity, it's unbelievable. So we'll see what
happens. Q. When you were asked to play on the opening
Sunday here, you weren't too happy. Do you think that the things that
have happened since maybe changed your mind? You said you always played
in front of Nadal. On reflection, has it worked out as well as it could have, do you think? ROGER
FEDERER: All the years are different. You have to wait for the weather.
Who knows, maybe I would have played ‑‑ I don't know. It was similar
for all of us, you know. I just thought that was a little bit easier
for me mentally to always play ahead of him. But, look, it's not going
to make you win the matches automatically. You still got to work for
them. You know how it is in Australia. Sometimes
you get cooler days, you play at night, you have the hot days and
stuff, you can get unlucky. I'm not saying you need luck to win Grand Slams,
but sometimes, you know, a good schedule or a lucky day. Today, I
thought it was unlucky that it was so windy. Turned around to be okay
for me. Just got to live with it, you know. You can't change them. THE MODERATOR: Questions in French, please. Q.
You hit the ball with the frame a number of times in the beginning of
the match. Was it your position in regards to the ball? ROGER
FEDERER: I think it was due to the wind, certainly. After that, you
start losing confidence in your shots and things start not working, and
then at the end, you're going so bad that you really think it can't get
any further. You're trying to play some shots and you hit it with the
frame, you start thinking you've got to change something. So I started
to play more slice, and this helped. It enabled me to go back into the
match, and I was playing better after that. I was varying my shots. It
worked out well. Q. You took five games in a row, and then you won five games in a row. How do you explain the change? ROGER
FEDERER: It's difficult to explain. He was in control of the match, and
I don't think it was expected that I would be able to turn the match
around. But there's always a bit of change with him. He doesn't have
the best serve, and I have tennis that enables me to break and to win
my serve. In the beginning, I wasn't serving very well. I
wasn't in confidence from the baseline. But in the end, I was able to
turn the match around in my favor, and this was very important because
if he'd be leading two sets to love, he wouldn't have given up. So I'm
very happy that I won the second set, because this was the key to the
match. Q. At the end of the match, what did you feel? Are you
satisfied that you won, but at the same time it's a match that's
incomplete? ROGER FEDERER: Well, it was over. He gave up.
But if he'd been leading 5‑Love in the third set, he wouldn't have
given up. I tried to push him, and I think it doesn't usually happen
that someone actually starts playing a match and then gives up halfway
through. So he wished me good luck for the final, which was very nice.
It's true, it's a bit unfortunate to win a match like this in a
semifinal. But I think I worked to put myself in that position. I think
I deserve it. Q. If Nadal reaches the final, what is
the difference between the first two and the others? You're always
looking for number three. There's you, Nadal and everybody
else. What do you think about this difference? I can't remember there
being such a difference at some point in the past. Is it because you
two are too good, because everybody else isn't at your level? What do
you think about this? ROGER FEDERER: Difficult to explain. I think that Nadal
has been so strong these last few years. He's shown also on other
surfaces, not only on clay. So a number of persons are saying that he
can only play on clay, but they have absolutely no idea of tennis, in
particular those also who say I can't play on clay, they don't
understand tennis either. You've got to be aware that he's won Madrid indoor, Toronto
outdoor against very good players. So in the end, it's being consistent
that makes a difference. This is probably our great strength, his and
mine. He has a little bit of difficulty on grass, but maybe he hasn't
had too many opportunities. We'll see what he does this year. But I think that is the difference. Also, it's winning major matches, such as this one against Nalbandian. I think this is why we keep ourselves at the top of the ranking. Q. Did Nalbandian explain what was wrong with him at the end of the match? ROGER FEDERER: No, I'm not sure what was wrong with him. Q.
Could you tell us a bit more about those two shots at 3‑1 and 3‑3?
Could you tell us a bit more about it. How did you play these shots? ROGER
FEDERER: Well, the first shot, I think we were both on our baseline. I
was trying to play a slice, but I think I didn't use the right angle
with my racquet so it wasn't so fantastic or so sliced. So it was a
different angle, and he wasn't expecting that. And in the end, the shot
was faster than he expected so he wasn't able to respond. And
then the second shot, I think that was just a reflex shot and the ball
took the wind. I couldn't play it between the legs, so I had to turn
again. Then I thought, What do I do now? I still tried to play that
ball, but it fell bang into the corner. That was a piece of good luck.
It was just something I was trying to send back. Q. In the hypothesis of a match between No. 1 and No. 2, we get the feeling that Nadal has shown a few weaknesses this year? Have you found a solution? We saw he had difficulty against Paul‑Henri Mathieu. Do you feel that it's possible to beat him? ROGER FEDERER: You mean after what he's been doing this tournament? Hmm, I'm not so sure (smiling). He's
never had a fifth set. He's had tough matches, that's certain, but it's
normal. You don't expect 6‑2, 6‑2, 6‑2 from the very first round until
he holds the cup. That's not the way things happen in tennis. Usually,
you have to fight a bit more. So I've heard a number of
comments on his tennis. Some people think he doesn't play very well.
But in any case, the conditions are always changing. You don't always
play your best. I think that until now he's been playing the way he
needed to play, and he's been winning his matches, which is the
important thing. I don't see any weaknesses in his game. Q. Two days to the final. Over these two days, are you going to prepare for the next match differently? Justine Henin was saying earlier that on the day of the final she woke up at 6 a.m., even if she was playing in the afternoon? ROGER FEDERER: I'm going to wake up at 5:00. I'm not going to sleep anyway, for two days (laughter). Well,
I didn't sleep very well last night, so I think tonight I'm going to
sleep a bit better. Now that I have this opportunity, I'm just going to
try to do what I usually do, my usual routine. I wake up, I come a few
hours before the match to warm up, to train a bit. I'm going to just
follow my usual routine. I'm not going to change anything for the
final. First round, final, it's the same thing. This is what has helped
me win up until now. I'm not going to change it. Q. Is it something special for you to be in the final of the French Open as compared to another Grand Slam? ROGER FEDERER: Well, now, yes. Each final of a Grand Slam
has something special. I'll see what happens here. Today at the
beginning of the match, there were not many people in the stands. They
were probably arriving a bit late. But from the final, I think they'll
be around from the beginning. I know the atmosphere here is fabulous. I
have experience from the other Grand Slams, each has its charm. We'll see what happens here in the final of the French Open. Q. What about the possibility of succeeding in the Grand Slam over two seasons, because you're going to play the final of Roland Garros on Sunday? ROGER
FEDERER: Well, I have created a fabulous opportunity for myself, so
we'll see if I can make it good. I'm happy that I got this far. If I
win the tournament, it will be something special because I'll be
winning two things at the same time.
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