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APIA INTERNATIONAL SYDNEYJanuary 15, 2015Viktor TroickiSYDNEY, NEW SOUTH WALES V. TROICKI/S. Bolelli THE MODERATOR: Questions, please. Q. Congrats. Really tough out there, wasn't it? VIKTOR TROICKI: Yeah, it was. I was expecting pretty tough match. I had few tough battles with Simone, who's a good friend. I think he played great. He was unlucky at the end to lose. But I think we both played good. I was defending a lot because he was really aggressive. Yeah, I had bit more luck in the end and played some good points, played some big points pretty good. So I was happy with that. I also served well. So I'm really satisfied with the win today and happy with the result. Q. Matches through qualifying in both Brisbane and here and the rounds here, was that the highest level match you played, that quarterfinal tonight? VIKTOR TROICKI: Probably, yeah. Yeah. I mean, Simone played most aggressive from all the guys. It was, yeah, pretty high level I think. Mentally it was also tough. So conditions were perfect tonight, apart from‑‑ yeah, yesterday was pretty tough to play against Pablo Andujar. Even though I played three sets, I think it was much worse tennis than today. Today I felt good on the court and it was pretty nice to play.  I enjoyed it tonight and I'm happy that I won. Q. What is your mindset these days with tennis? Just seems like the last six months or so have been a real whirlwind for you obviously from the ban and then to come back from a very low ranking and now shooting up into the top 100 again. Doing really well. VIKTOR TROICKI: Well, I experienced something that most of the guys don't experience. I've been banned, yeah, from playing. When you cannot do something that you love and when you're not doing it for a while you see how much you miss it and love it. Ever since I was a kid I dreamed about this, playing, competing, doing something that I love. I really love playing tennis. So I enjoy on the court much more than I used to. Yeah, it's fun being back. All my life I was looking forward to this. I enjoy it more on the court, as I said. It's more fun and more enjoyment on the court. Q. Does it make your ambition greater now? You did very well before. Got to No. 12 in the world. Are you aiming for the top 10 now? VIKTOR TROICKI: I am, I am. That was my goal even before. Now it's definitely also again my goal, to get to the top 10. Even probably more than before I'm really motivated for that. I think I'm working harder than before. Yeah, Jack has been helping me a lot with that. I think it's a lot mental. Mentally I'm stronger in some moments. Yeah, I'm looking forward to the next period. It's been tough coming back from the bottom, from zero, and I think I did it pretty well in a short time. I've been playing only three and a half, four months actually, because November and December were dead. There was no tournaments. I started only end of July. So it was tough period behind me, but I'm looking forward to the next period where I can play in the main draws of the big events. That's where I think I can make some good wins and good points. Q. You were sort of punished for something you didn't deliberately try to do. Did you ever think, You know what, I'm just going to walk away because I was treated unjustly? VIKTOR TROICKI: Well, you know, in life anything could happen to anyone. This thing that happened to me, I felt it was unfair. I know‑‑ me and my coach both know what really went on in that room. I didn't do anything wrong. I just followed the doctor's instructions. That was my mistake. I learned something. It was a life lesson definitely. The start was probably very, very hard. Mentally I was very down. I didn't play for some time at all. For sure it was tough to focus on anything. I mean, I needed some time off from everything. Yeah, it was fun in the start. I did some things that I couldn't do before. I just relaxed and enjoyed the time off. After that I started missing it. I started thinking about tennis and how much I like it and how much I want to get back. That's what pushed me to get back even stronger. So that's the whole thing. Q. Did you lose any sponsors over it? VIKTOR TROICKI: Oh, yeah, I did. Q. Did you feel you had to always defend yourself? Did you feel embarrassed? VIKTOR TROICKI: No. Well, if you read the case, I was tested and I was clean. I never took anything. Deep in myself I know that I didn't do anything wrong. Just it was too many unlucky things happened in that room that day. It was just a nightmare for me after that. Yeah, ITF, such an organization, they cannot have a mistake in their whole system. They blame me. It was my mistake. That was the deal. They went clean and I was the one that didn't obey the rules. So, yeah, I mean, that's behind me actually. It's been long time since it happened. Of course it affected my life and a lot of things, sponsors and also prize money. I lost ranking. I had to start from zero. I could not play the big events from the start. It was a very tough period. But on the other hand, I found out who my real friends are. They stood by my side. They were there for me. Also my family. They are the ones that believed in me and they are the ones that understood the whole situation. That's the most important thing to me, you know. So, yeah, as I said, I feel innocent. I never did anything wrong. Q. What kind of conversations did you have with Novak about it? VIKTOR TROICKI: Well, he knew straight on as I had a problem. He knew right away. He was deeply involved in that case because he was the one that really helped me probably the most with media. Media‑wise he was going public about it. It was something that I will never forget. We're great friends since we were kids, but he stood by me and went against the organization and he had some problems because of that. So, I mean, really showed me how good he is. He's a great person. I will admire that for the rest of my life. That's for sure. Q. You played quite a few tough matches, yesterday and one today. Do you think that you may be running a little bit out of gas before the Australian Open? VIKTOR TROICKI: Out of gas? Q. Yeah. VIKTOR TROICKI: No. I had one year to get ready, so I'm fitter than ever. I can do anything. No, I feel perfectly fine. Even though I play quallies, that's what you got to do when you want to get back from zero back to the top. You got to go from the quallies. I knew what was coming. I did it already once in my career, why not twice? FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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