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Sunday, June 3, 2007
Roland Garros Fourth Round
By Roland Garros Official Site
R. FEDERER/M. Youzhny 7-6 (7-3), 6-4, 6-4
An interview with: ROGER FEDERER
Q. You played ten matches against Youzhny. Do you remember which one was the most difficult? ROGER FEDERER: Halle. He should have beat me there. I got lucky.
Q. He always plays you very tough. It's ten matches. What accounts for
the difference? How is it that you always win against him? He seems to
play pretty close with you most of the time. ROGER FEDERER:
Well, I guess it's maybe we have sort of a similar game, isn't it, you
know. Maybe I just, you know, hit my forehand a bit better than his,
the whole thing, or I have more firepower, maybe more confidence in
general, you know, more experience. Those little things make close
matches, but I come through in the end, you know. Today was no
different, you know. He had a good start. I didn't play so well. But I
got in the groove after that and it was a hard-fought match all the way
through, you know. I'm very happy to be through. Didn't drop a set
again so it was rock solid. Q. You've got to
be taking drop shot into new level, dropping off serves, dropping off
volleys. Is that a fall-out of Hamburg and maybe the fact that the
independence of not answering to somebody in the stands? ROGER FEDERER: The beginning was?
Q. I mean, is it a fall-out of Hamburg, is it the confidence that comes
from winning Hamburg, and the fact that you don't have to look up to
someone in the stand, that you have of your independence to do what you
want? ROGER FEDERER: Just in general, how I play, is that the question? Q. Drop shot. ROGER FEDERER: Drop shot? Q. Yeah. You're taking drop shot to a new level in this match.
ROGER FEDERER: I mean, I don't play so much. I used to play really not
much in the beginning of my career. Of course, I can play them more now
because, you know, I tell myself you have to do it a little bit on
clay, you know. But then I was never a guy who looked up into
my player's box very much in the first place, you know. So maybe it's
to protect myself in a situation like this. If you do split up with a
coach or wife or your girlfriend or somebody, you look up there, you
don't feel -- you know, you can't play tennis anymore. So I
have to concentrate on my own, you know, and on myself. That usually
worked out. So that's why, for me, it's just important, my girlfriend
is there and whoever is there. If I have 1,000 friends there, it's
great. If I have no friends, it's also okay. I can play tennis. Q. I was actually talking about you being on your own without a coach. ROGER FEDERER: I feel good. Playing well, too. So I'm happy.
Q. You played against Robredo in Australia, and now you're playing here
on clay. Does it make it more difficult for you, the fact that he's a
specialist on clay. Would that be tougher? ROGER FEDERER: I
mean, specialist, clay, hard court, I don't think -- the hard court's
gotten so slow, to be honest. So, I mean, I don't think you can say
that very much. All the specialists on clay are good hard court
players, too. And sometimes it's just a day for either side, if it goes
faster or not. I had a very tough match against him in
Australia, two tiebreakers. It's difficult conditions, with a bit of
windy, I remember. So now we are in the same round again against the
same, you know, players facing each other. So it's interesting, you
know. But I've not beaten him on clay before and I played
excellent matches against him. Once in Rome, I beat him very easily.
And sometimes you get matches like this, you know. Again, I feel we
have a bit of a same game, you know, of course, because we have both
the one handed backhand. It's just maybe I have more variety. But I
definitely felt in Australia he was playing better than when I played
him beforehand. He has improved over the last year or so, so I expect a
tough match against him, of course. Q. I'd like to know did you rate much like this from Youzhny today?
ROGER FEDERER: Yeah, I mean, I expect tougher, you know. I go in there,
I got enough shirts for five set matches, you know, in the bag. So I
only used one today, which was good, you know. I think he's a fantastic
player with a great touch, feel for the game. We know each other since
junior times, so over ten years basically. And I have a great
record against him, but still I have to be so careful every time I play
against him, you know, because he's such a good player. I hope he does
well in the future, too, and gets into the top 10 and becomes one of
the really top guys. Q. Today is Nadal's birthday. Did you congratulate him or not yet?
ROGER FEDERER: I saw him briefly. By the time I heard it was his
birthday, he was gone. So if I would see him, I will congratulate him,
but I guess not through the media. Q. The
other day, Arnaud Clement rated the three best volleyers in the world.
He said the three best were Henman, Llodra, and Bjorkman. Do you feel
insulted? ROGER FEDERER: Not at all. Should I? Q. Maybe.
ROGER FEDERER: I don't spend enough time at the net, you know. I served
and volleyed, what, maybe five times today. I just don't get enough of
a chance, you know. But I hope for the doubles players that
there are some better volleyers than me, because they have to rely more
on the volleys than I have to, so. Q. You
wouldn't stack up your own volley, just generally volleying, and
forgetting about serving and volleying, you wouldn't stack up your
volley with anybody else in the world? ROGER FEDERER: I think I would.
Q. Were you surprised at the end that he did not want to go away
quietly? Were you worried that the last game he really wanted to get
back into the match? ROGER FEDERER: No. I mean, look, it's
always the toughest game, basically. They want to serve it out,
because, you know, you feel the crowd's getting into it, you know, it's
his last chance, and if he does break back, he's got the momentum on
his side. The crowd's going to get into it even more so. It makes it a
very difficult game to close out. So I was -- it got very
close for me, but I stayed calm and served a good serve in the end. So
I was happy to come out 6-4 in the end. THE MODERATOR: Sorry. ROGER FEDERER: It's okay. When you say "One last question" I'm always happy, you know. I stop right away.
Q. You seemed to have a little bit more trouble in your service games
today than you had earlier in the tournament. Is that because of you or
because of Youzhny or a combination? ROGER FEDERER: Yeah,
better player, better returner. I definitely didn't serve that great,
you know, today on my first serve. I mean, I served well at some stages
of the match and served well when I had to. But, just think, you know,
in general, I wasn't hitting my spots so well, like the last few days.
It happens sometimes. But I've got such a reliable second serve, you
know, that it's okay. I can always keep on going for it and wait for
the moment when it comes back. So it was okay. But, of course,
he's a better returner, too, gets back more balls. It's just from the
baseline tougher. You have to feel all of a sudden your serve is not
that effective when you're playing against a better player. THE MODERATOR: French questions. Q. Are you aware of the fact -- ROGER FEDERER: I don't know. Q. -- the record from McEnroe in 1984, 11 matches, 35 sets won back to back in a Grand Slam tournament. ROGER FEDERER: So? Q. So are you happy with it? What do you think of it? What do you think it? What does it represent for you?
ROGER FEDERER: I mean I was not aware of that. So it hasn't happened
for quite a long time. But it is something which is quite special, I
would say. It is true that during this period, I could have lost some
sets. I had some service points and all of a sudden, there is a streak.
But I'm focused on Roland Garros and I want to win my matches.
And if I can win in three sets, I mean, so much the better. But I'm not
looking for these types of records. Q. What about the outset of a match, and what about your serve? You had some problems with your serve.
ROGER FEDERER: My timing was not there, with my serve. I think in
Dubai, I lost my serve at the start of a set and they put pressure on
me immediately. So with him, you need to set your game out and, in
fact, I wanted to come up with a forehand and I wanted to come up with
a dummy. And it didn't work out. But I remained calm and
focused. That was quite important. So my first serve percentage was not
quite high, but I don't care about percentage. If it's 20 percent in
terms of my first serve, I mean, I don't care about that if I can win
the match. And I have a good second serve and I'm very happy with the
match. It was a solid display on my part. Q. How did you use your off days in the first week? In the second week are you going to change your habits?
ROGER FEDERER: I hope so. So if I defeat Robredo, I will have two days
off. I mean, we are not there yet. So I need to think about the next
match. The first week was quite tough, in fact. I played three days in
a row. Then one day off. But it was quick, because I ended my match
very late in the evening. So I didn't have time to do other things.
Maybe the second week, if I defeat Robredo I will have two days off, so
I can and I will be able to do other things. So I will be able to go
shopping, for example. Q. So this is a
three-set match and you are in the Round of 16 and you get off the
court and the crowd is real ecstatic as though you've won the
tournament. So there's something happening this year between the crowd
and you? Do you feel that? ROGER FEDERER: Of course. Of
course. It started when I played the first semifinal against Nadal. At
the end of the match, people chanted my name and I was really moved
because it was late and I had a break in the fourth set. And people
realized that the match was about to change, that it was about to win.
But all of a sudden I had the feeling that the public was with me and I
was a little bit surprised, in fact. And last year, again, I
mean the crowd supported me, especially at the end of the fourth set.
So I think that this year, the crowd would like me to win here because
I've been trying hard. And, in fact, I speak French. My French is not
fluent, but I'm not too bad in French, I would say. But it's why the
crowd is with me and I enjoy it. And it is true that the Center Court
was full. It was fantastic impression. Q. On the court you seemed stone-faced. ROGER FEDERER: What do you mean by that? Calm? Q. Nadal is waiting for you. ROGER FEDERER: He just has to celebrate his birthday. Q. So in your mind, are you in distress?
ROGER FEDERER: I was quite relaxed today. I was happy, though I lost my
serve. I said to myself I have some time. And this is the mindset that
I want to have on the court. I want to be confident in my mental and
physical capabilities, and I felt good. In my mind, I was quite okay.
So it demonstrates that I'm confident. And when I'm confident, I play
better, especially on crucial points today. I pulled out all the stops
to do that, and it will continue. That's what I hope. Q. I want to tell you that for the America's Cup, the guys from New Zealand are ahead of the Swiss team.
ROGER FEDERER: It's not yet over. It's not yet over. Swiss people are
very relaxed. Wait and see. So they might break the boat, but at the
end of the day, we're going to see what happens at the end. I'm a
little bit anxious, but I think that the semifinal of the America's Cup
will start at 3. So it's the same thing again. I hope that the guys
from New Zealand won't have the same problem as those of last time. Q. The next match is against Tommy Robredo. But what about the next stages? Do you have Rafael Nadal in your mind?
ROGER FEDERER: Of course. You're asking me a question so I need to
answer, but I tend to focus on Robredo. Robredo is a good player. He
has produced good matches on clay and in other tournaments. But I would
say that he has made headway. So I expect a tough match, a tricky
match, in fact. It won't be easy against Robredo. And physically he's
very strong and mentally he's better. And his game is better, so it
will be interesting but tough match. So winning Roland Garros doesn't boil down to beating Nadal. It's totally different.
Q. A question about the Hawkeye system. The Wimbledon managers have
announced that they're going to use the Hawkeye system. What do you
think of it? I mean, it's very often used in the tournament. What do
you think of that? ROGER FEDERER: At the start, I was a
little bit reluctant, so it's not necessary. And there was a match
between Serena and Capriati. That's why they decided to set up the
Hawkeye system. But I don't think the fate of a match was decided on
this point. But it's a change that has been made possible via the ATP.
But on clay, we don't use the Hawkeye. On hard surfaces, for example, I
mean you can use your challenge or a spot on the Hawkeye system, but it
won't make a tremendous impact. Of course you can use the system, but
it's not the decisive one. I'm quite okay with it. It doesn't disturb
me anymore.
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