	products recent interviews FastScripts archive about ASAP Sports

Our Clients:

Browse by Sport

Find us on

Subscribe to RSS

Click to go to
Asaptext.com

View our
e-Brochure

ROLAND GARROS

May 25, 2015

David Goffin

PARIS, FRANCE

D. GOFFIN/F. Krajinovic
3-6, 6-2, 7-6, 6-1

THE MODERATOR: Questions in French, please.

Q. Well, you said the first round wouldn't be easy and it wasn't easy. 4-Love, down the line, break in the first set, what were you thinking?
DAVID GOFFIN: It was not an easy round. I expected that. I knew he was a good player, both on the forehand and also along the lines and backhand. I knew it would be tough. He's a really good player, and this is what I saw today. But I managed to remain calm and serene. I didn't expect to come back that quickly, but I tried to play each and every single point. I wanted to focus on the score. He was up 5-3. He was serving for the match. I wanted to remain solid. And even though he could have won the third set, I was ready for the fourth or fifth set if necessary to remain serene and to continue. You know, he played a solid match during the first and third set, but I wanted to remain consistent and to hit each point and to play deeper and deeper. Little by little I was playing better. Therefore, for a Grand Slam, sometimes it's a good thing to have such a first match.

Q. Now, what about your tactics? Was it to weather the storm? He was having more and more winners. Or to be more aggressive? How did you manage the situation?
DAVID GOFFIN: Well, you know, the thing is that I tried, as I said, to remain calm. That is, he was having sequences of shots. During the first set and beginning of the third set he was really good. With three sets like this one would've been really good for him. I wanted to continue to focus on the match, to gain points little by little, to play better each point, and this is it. This was the key today: to remain mentally stable and develop the best type of tennis. Be mentally stable and then my level of game was going up until the end of the match. He couldn't do that, and this reassured me.

Q. Well, this is it. Your game level. You said you were gaining power during the match. Are you satisfied with what you put out?
DAVID GOFFIN: Yes, I was very satisfied. He's a very good player. He was playing well at moments. Mentally I'm satisfied. I was still very much focusing on the match. It really was a good match to start a tournament to have this fight. He broke down, you know. And mentally in my head, even though on the moments he was up, I didn't break down. He played well, but then after that, you know, he lost his focus and I played better. I won 6-1 in the fourth set, and I'm very satisfied with this match.

Q. (In English.) Talk about your climb up the rankings into the top 20 and what the key has been in the past six months or so.
DAVID GOFFIN: (In English. ) Yeah, I'm in the top 20 now for the first time. I think the key to be in top 20 was to be just more consistent. I played really well since Miami, and then match after match my level was higher. Now I played for first time quarterfinal in Rome, so that's why now I'm in the top 20. But more for the moment the confidence is there and the level is high, so I'm going to try to keep going like this.

Q. (In French) next is Giraldo. What do you think about this match? What do you know about him?
DAVID GOFFIN: Yes, I saw he won the match. Was easy for him, three-set match. I think he plays really well. He played well Geneva last week, and he's a player who has rhythm and pace. He hits each point hard, both forehand and backhand. So we'll have a lot of speed during this match, I think, but I'll prepare for this tomorrow. I don't really know him well, but I'm going to focus on myself and that's it. That's what I did today. I'll try and produce and develop the best type of tennis. I feel good, and I'll try and continue like this.

Q. When you saw the draw, David, I mean, were you thinking about your objectives, and what did you think? Could I clay against Murray during the round of 16? This would be nice?
DAVID GOFFIN: No, no, not at all. It's too far away. I had Krajinovic in the first round, and that's what I saw in the draw. I was prudent and careful during the first round. Now that's okay. Now I'm going to focus on the second round, and that's Giraldo. No, I had not looked at this part of the draw. I didn't know I would be against Murray for the round of 16. No, I'll focus on the next match. You know, I don't think about the long run. Mainly in a Grand Slam it's always the best of three sets, so it's difficult to make forecasts. I'll try to prepare for the next match so that I win it.

Q. You've gone through the first round; it's a Grand Slam; you're relieved. I suppose you're thinking, That's done. Are you really in the tournament now or reassured by your level of game, things that you were thinking about, I don't know, a fortnight ago? Independently from the match scenario, are you thinking, Okay, that's the first round; I'm happy because I've gone through and I'm going to reach the next level? I'm not talking about score itself. See what I mean?
DAVID GOFFIN: Yeah, it's never easy to start a Grand Slam. The first rounds are always very important. My level of game was there. We fought really hard on the court. That's good. Good first round to be in the tournament. As I said before, I'm really in the tournament now. Sometimes it takes such matches, you know, and seeded players or players in the top 10 who win 6-1, 6-2, 6-2, it's so easy. Sometimes it's good to have this fight during the first round. I didn't have to use too much energy today. I was feeling so good. But it's never easy to start a first round of a Grand Slam, that's true. Now that the first round is over, I'm not saying I'm relieved, but I'm saying it's good to think that now I'm really in this tournament.

Q. Did you like the crowd when they were supporting you? Is that something important for the rest of the tournament?
DAVID GOFFIN: Yes, of course. I played on a very nice court, Court No. 2. The atmosphere was a bit different, and the sound as well. It sounds a lot. And the other court next to ours, Court 3, I think, and the crowd was with me. They supported me. That's true that we're here at Roland Garros and we have many Belgium supporters and fans. It's really good for us to have so many fans. I hope it's going to continue like this in the future.

Q. David, I have a different question: I'm from Luxembourg. I am a journalist. You've played against Muller in Rotterdam this year. What do you think about him? What do you think about the man if you know him?
DAVID GOFFIN: He's a good guy. I get on well with him. Of course he speaks French. I played against him several times. I think he's a player who's a good lefty. He serves well. It's never easy to play against these type of players. I don't know what he did here. He's going to play tomorrow? Okay, tomorrow. I don't know. Irrespective of the surface he's a tough player, but clay is not his best surface, I think. This is a disadvantage for him. But he serves so well. It's difficult to negotiate. He's always calm and consistent. Not easy to manage.

Q. What about this match you played in Rotterdam?
DAVID GOFFIN: Well, difficult to manage. He serves so hard. I couldn't break him. It was a quick indoor surface. This is his courtyard.

Q. (In English.) The 25-win streak that you had last summer, to what degree was that a springboard to the success you're having now?
DAVID GOFFIN: I think last year I had 25 wins because I played some challenger to get some confidence, and then now it's different. I'm always in the Masters 1000, and it's not easy to make another 25-wins streak. But, yeah, I've got some wins on clay and I think I have some confidence for this tournament, but I will try to win a lot of the matches now.

Q. (In French.) What about Giraldo? Would you say this is his best surface?
DAVID GOFFIN: I think have so. You know, South American, you know, and he plays well on hard surfaces as well. You know, on both surfaces I would say his results are good. On clay he plays really well. He's hit and hits hard, both sides, as I said. It's not going to be an easy match, but I think, yeah, this is his surface. He feels good on clay. That's it. I think he is fit.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297