TMS - MADRID

October 17, 2005

Fernando Verdasco

THE MODERATOR: Questions.

FERNANDO VERDASCO: Yes, I've also thought about it. It looked like a Davis Cup. I had to defend the day. I thought about it, but this is a singles tournament. I'm sad because of Feli, because he's my friend. Besides, this is a very important tournament, but tennis is like this. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. If I lose, I'll be sad, too. But today I won. It was a regular match. I started well, serving well. Then my service level dropped a bit - not because I was not concentrating, but because it was like this. Then in the third set, it was 1-1, 15-40, that was the game that gave me the energy to recover the match and then break his serve the next game, take advantage of my serve. The last game, I was a bit nervous, but I made a lot of aces. I overcame the pressure.

FERNANDO VERDASCO: In Madrid, it's difficult to play. Everyone says the ball flies. It's difficult to control it. The court anyway is great. The ball bounces well. You can play perfectly well. You can play as Henman and Dent are playing right now, or like we Spaniards play. The only thing that's difficult is to control the ball. But since I train here, thanks to this, I have it easier. Feli also has it easier, although he does not train here. He comes here often, so he's used to the court, to the altitude.

FERNANDO VERDASCO: Almagro and Guillermo Garcia are the other two players in the top 100 that went to Logrono.

FERNANDO VERDASCO: It's a tough match. I've already played against him twice this year: Monte-Carlo on clay and New Haven fast court. I've beaten him once. But it's going to be a tough match because his serve is great, and that makes things difficult. I'll try my best and try to win, which is the important thing, make it to the third round again.

FERNANDO VERDASCO: Yeah, you regret something because to play against a player like (indiscernible), it's difficult. It's a pity I cannot play quarterfinals against him, but that was a very bad match for me. That's a typical day of tennis where you do nothing right.

FERNANDO VERDASCO: The meeting is there, but I'm not going to say anything about what we spoke about. No one has anything against Emilio, them nor myself. Emilio, as far as I know, hasn't done anything to us. But they preferred Albert. I know far better Albert than Emilio, that's for sure. I've trained with him in Barcelona the first four months of the year. I've been a companion to him. He hasn't retired yet. He's been playing here. We don't know what he'll do afterwards. In this sense, I don't want to give my opinion. I've kept my opinion to myself. I trust the president. If the president feels Emilio is better, I don't want to say the contrary. I've known Emilio since I was 15. I'm always going to defend Pedro, besides, because I think he does the best for tennis. He knows I trust him. If he chooses Emilio, that will be fine for me.

FERNANDO VERDASCO: Yes. To tell you the truth, I feel comfortable on all surfaces. I'm not a player who feels well on clay but then bad on grass. I think I can defend all surfaces. Maybe I've achieved better results on one than another. The only one which is difficult for me is grass, although I really enjoy playing on grass. I only play about two tournaments a year, so I have no chances. Like clay, I have 20 tournaments, for instance, so I have far more chances of doing well. Fast court, I've done well at the US Open, for instance. Clay, I've done Rome quarterfinals. I feel comfortable on many surfaces. I know I can improve anyway on all surfaces because I don't want to stick to one surface.