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DUBAI DUTY FREE TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPSFebruary 27, 2015Novak DjokovicDUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES N. DJOKOVIC/T. Berdych THE MODERATOR: Questions, please. Q. Hard work, wasn't it? NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Well, you don't expect anything less than hard work against somebody who has been top‑10 player for many years. Even after the first set that went as perfectly as possible and when I was break up I knew that the match is not over. You know, he has room to elevate his game. I just wanted to stay on that level, but it was hard. I started making some unforced errors, backed up a little bit, less first serves in. Then he stepped in. From that moment on it was an even match, a lot of unforced errors from my side. Just wasn't feeling the ball great in the third but somehow managed to hang in there. Q. When a match changes character so much as that one did, is it a bigger mental challenge? NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Yes, of course it is. When you feel so good on the court as well as I felt for the first 30 minutes, there's not much you're thinking of. You're in the present moment and you're swinging through the ball, and everything works as well as you want. But then, you know, of course you're going to come to the stage of the match where you're going to get tested, especially when you're playing, as I said, a quality player like Tomas. Then unfortunately I dropped a level, lost two breaks of serve, managed to come back. Close few games at 5‑All. But again, it's a big win. Anywhere playing against Tomas, especially in the semifinals of a tournament, it's a win that I'm taking and I'm happy about and hopefully I will be able to start tomorrow as well as I did today, you know, kind of maintain that rhythm, because that's necessary in order to win against Roger who has been playing throughout the week some great tennis. Q. This is going to be the fourth time you play Roger here. What do you remember the first time you played here in 2007? NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Yeah, at the time it was one of my biggest matches. I think we played quarters or something like that in this tournament. Of course when you play Roger, it's always a great challenge. He brings the best game in you, and he makes you play your best tennis. If you want to win you have to play your best tennis, especially against Roger in the finals in any event but here particularly, because I feel like this is the kind of a surface and conditions that it suits his game the best. So we'll see. We played a couple of ‑‑we played finals in '11 and semifinals a couple years ago. I look forward to it. Actually, last year. I look forward to it. It's always a tough match. I need to be ready for the battle. I need to be ready to stay focused throughout the whole match, and hopefully I'll be able to do that. Q. Is it tougher because this is something of a home court advantage for him that he lives here or not at all? The crowd? NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Well, he's been playing for a long time here. Crowd? Yeah, crowd is ‑‑of course he has support anywhere he goes in the world. He's Roger Federer, of course, with all his accomplishments and everything. We all know that he enjoys a lot of support. But the other hand I think I have also decent support, and hopefully we can create a quality match for the crowd to enjoy. Q.  You took a slight fall. NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Yes. Q. What did you do to yourself to bring the trainer out? NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Just scratched. I started bleeding, and it didn't want to stop, so I just called the trainer to put a spray on it and just put something to stop the bleeding. That's all. Q. During the match, how often do you look up to Boris and notice his facial expressions? He gets really worried during the match. Do you notice that? NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Sometimes. Well, you know, of course my point of reference of vision is of course my box during the match, but regardless of who sits there and, you know, whatever is what they feel, I need to be the one that does the work on the court. But Boris is obviously‑‑ he cares. He cares about me winning, he cares about us bringing the good results. That's why he gets emotional. I spoke to him, and for him, this is obviously a different stage, different role in the tennis world. He coached a little bit. He was Davis Cup captain but not at this level, and the highest level, to be able to go through the same emotions but from outside of the court, of course, it is different, but he's getting used to it. I know how he feels. Obviously one day I will probably stay in the same position and coach somebody. Maybe my younger brother, maybe somebody else. Sometimes it's more difficult to watch the match, watch the player than actually be on the court. Because when you're on the court, you know what you feel and you control those emotions and those movements and everything that you do. When you're outside, it's unpredictable. Q. When you have these weeks with Boris, do you speak to Marian at all? NOVAK DJOKOVIC: To Marian? Yeah, of course. We get in touch every tournament. He speaks to Boris every single day. I speak to Marian, you know, few times per tournament, and he gives his opinions on my game and what I need to do and how I should approach it mentally, of course, tactically. So he's actively involved even though he's not physically present. Q. When is he next ‑‑are you going to ‑‑ NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Right now Indian Wells he's going to be... Q. Rather than Boris or both of them? NOVAK DJOKOVIC: No, just Marian. And then Boris in Miami. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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