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BNP PARIBAS MASTERSOctober 27, 2014Pierre-Hugues HerbertPARIS, FRANCE A. MANNARINO/P. Herbert THE MODERATOR: Questions in French, please. Q. You had set points in the first set. PIERRE‑HUGUES HERBERT: Just one. I was up 5‑3, and I had one set point. It was a long rally. Maybe 15 or 20 hits. I went to the net and missed my volley. I played very poorly at 5‑3, and it was 3‑1 and a break also, but that's the way it is. Adrian is returning well, so it was not a surprise for me to be broken. He played very well during the tiebreaker. He was very solid and I collapsed during the rally. I made too many mistakes early in the rallies in this tiebreaker. So I won a set, I won a match, but after I was a bit tired physically. I believe this season is a bit long for me. But I had another two sets to win, and he remained very solid in the second set and he was not tired. Q. What about Rafa's match? PIERRE‑HUGUES HERBERT: Well, I played my match even if I didn't win today, but I stayed focused all along. So it was positive compared with the previous matches. Q. Playing a French player against a player who is about the same age as you, was it difficult? PIERRE‑HUGUES HERBERT: Yes, it's always complicated when you play another Frenchman. It was tight, 5‑3, 3‑1, and we were playing home. So these matches are extremely important for us, and many points are at stake. Each victory in a tournament like this brings a lot, so we were tense. But we were able to get into that match and forget about all this. Q. Coming back to Bercy after your last performance, was it difficult? PIERRE‑HUGUES HERBERT: Yes, I was remembering last year, but now was it more complicated or easier? I don't know. Maybe I had more pressure here this year because people were expecting things from me. But I played well. I had goals for the end of the season being among the top 100, but it's going to be tough for me to be in the draw for the Australian Open because I have points to defend. But there was a lot of pressure for this match, and I really wanted to do well. But I like this. It keeps me motivated. I don't believe the pressure stopped me today in this first round, but I won a long streak of matches, and I believe I was a bit tired for me to win that match. Q. Your goal, as you said, was to be top 100 at the end of the year. So everything will take place at Mouilleron? PIERRE‑HUGUES HERBERT: Well, I hope it's going to go well there, so I'll see what happens there. Maybe I'll play an extra tournament at the end of the season, I don't know where, to try to get those points that will help me be in the draw for the Australian Open. But being in the draw in Australia is not the end of everything. I need to be ready for the whole year to come. So I need to prepare also for next season, so I have to make a choice between trying to get into the Australian Open and between having a good preparation for the new season. Q. Is it just a matter of two, three points that can make the difference? Can you explain? PIERRE‑HUGUES HERBERT: Yes, two, three points, like a set point that I didn't make today can make a difference between a win and a loss. So you could say I played a good match, but I didn't win in the end. So that match might not be as good as you think. These details make a difference at the end of the year. I think this year had ups and downs. There were very good things but also very bad things. Some matches I lost that I shouldn't have lost. And if I had won these matches, I might have a better ranking now. You really need to be very consistent all year round if you want your ranking to improve. Q. But we see you are more mature now. You are more solid from the baseline. You mix it up a lot. You have a good backhand. So what should you do next? Being less aggressive and choosing a better moment to come up? PIERRE‑HUGUES HERBERT: Of course you need a lot of experience to play the kind of game I have, because I am aggressive. I go up to the net very often. And of course, as you say, I need to make the right choices. I believe I'm not at my best level yet as far as choices and tactics are concerned. Maybe I need to learn what risks I have to take. I think the better players know when to be aggressive at the right moment, so I have to improve that. But this year here I think Court No. 1 is slower than center court, so it was more difficult for me to go up to the net, so sometimes even if you go up to the net at the right moment you might not win the point because the opponent can make a passing. So of course you need to adapt to all this, but today I didn't manage this situation well enough and I didn't win. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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