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AUSTRALIAN OPEN

January 26, 2015

Gilles Muller

MELBOURNE, VICTORIA

N. DJOKOVIC/G. Muller
6-4, 7-5, 7-5
An interview with:
GILLES MULLER

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. How tough was it to play Novak?
GILLES MULLER: Yeah, was not easy. I mean, I knew before that it was going to be a tough match. Yeah, he's probably the best baseliner at the moment. Yeah, I knew it was going to be tough. But I tried to play aggressive. Even though sometimes, I mean, he was tough, because was not easy to get to the net. Yeah, I tried very hard to do that. I think it paid off quite a lot. But, yeah, I think I played maybe one or two bad games on my serve in the match. Yeah, those guys, they're right there right away at that moment and you're behind.

Q. When did you realize your game makes him feel a bit uncomfortable?
GILLES MULLER: I think I started playing a little bit more courageous in the second set. I think in the first set I was hesitating, not going enough to the net, yeah, just kind of waiting to see what happens. After I lost that set I told myself, Well, I think if you play like that, you're going to play a good match, but you have no chance to win it. So I forced myself to go more, even if I took a chance to get passed or miss a volley. It was very tough to play the volleys because the ball was very low and onto the net. It was not easy for me. I thought that was the right way to play. I'm pretty convinced the next time I play him I will do that again.

Q. He paid credit to you and your performance. What is the reason you are falling back in the ranking, is it just injuries? How do you rate your career?
GILLES MULLER: It's definitely because of injuries. But I think there's a lot of things. I think right now I have a lot of trust in my body. I used that time off when I was injured in 2013. I couldn't play tennis for about four months, couldn't touch a racquet. In that time I used that time to really get fit, to get in good shape. I'm really trusting my body now. Before that I thought that maybe my body was a little bit fragile, I always had little injuries. Yeah, I used that time to do the right things. Also I kind of made a deal with myself that since I have two kids at home now and a family, when I'm going away, I'm going to go away and do the right stuff. I'm not going to mess around and lose time on doing the wrong things. Just go for it and give it the last shot. That's what I'm doing. I knew it was going to be my last shot last year when I started again after the injury. I'm more disciplined maybe, more focused on what I have to do also outside the court. Yeah, I guess that's about it.

Q. Are you well-known in Luxembourg? You're the only professional tennis player.
GILLES MULLER: We have a woman also, Mandy Minella. We used to have two other women ranked in the top 100. I mean, famous? I think people recognize me on the street. But they're pretty cool about it. I'm not a star there.

Q. Is it correct you don't have a coach traveling with you? Your doubles partner is coaching you?
GILLES MULLER: He's actually my coach. Last year when we started, when I came back from injury, he was also injured. It was Jamie Delgado. He is a doubles player because he hasn't announced his retirement officially yet. But yeah, we started playing doubles in the challengers together. But he was helping me already in my singles. He was basically coaching me and we were playing doubles together. Then since his ranking in doubles dropped, my ranking in singles went up, and we couldn't play together anymore. That's why I think he decided to stop now and focus on the coaching career.

Q. You look like John McEnroe from afar. The bandana, Sergio Tacchini. Is that a coincidence?
GILLES MULLER: I take it as a compliment. He was one of these players that was very talented and he made tennis very famous. But I'm not trying to imitate him. I think it's a coincidence that I'm playing with Tacchini also. They asked me. I didn't ask them. Also the shirts we're wearing now, they actually told us they were like retro shirts from back in the day when John McEnroe was wearing them. I think that's pretty cool.

Q. Are you overall pleased with your tournament and how far you've come?
GILLES MULLER: Yeah, definitely. It's tough after a loss to say you're happy. I mean, I'm disappointed at that moment now. But I think if before the tournament somebody would have told me I would be in the fourth round in the second week of a slam after waiting for, when was the last time, in 2000, I would have signed up, yeah.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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