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WIMBLEDONJune 27, 2015Andy MurrayLONDON, ENGLAND THE MODERATOR: Questions, please. Q. You've been coming here for 10 years now. Do you ever get a chance to reflect on the younger version of yourself that came here and played Stepanek, Nalbandian? ANDY MURRAY: Yeah, I mean, I just spoke to a couple of the guys just beforehand about that. Yeah, it was very different for me back then coming into the event, you know, there was no pressure, no expectation. I didn't put any pressure or expectation on myself. I was just glad to be given the opportunity to play here. Yeah, all of the attention, stuff, that week when I was playing, it went from being zero to loads really. You know, after my second‑round match, I had a mixed doubles match. You know, I couldn't get out to the court. When I was going back to the place where I was staying, I had people following me, photographers and stuff. I mean, it was a lot more hectic back then for me away from the court. But on it there was also way, way less pressure. So it was very different to now. Q. Now with the pressure, do you thrive on it? Do you think, I've won here before, no reason I can't do it again? ANDY MURRAY: Yeah, I mean, I enjoy playing in the high‑pressure situations. You know, that's really what I play for now. I enjoy these events. I prepare extremely hard for them. Yeah, I feel like I'm coming in to the event as best prepared as I can be. And, yeah, hopefully I can perform well. Q. I've noticed in a couple of your interviews you've talked about sort of wanting to savor what's left of your career, not that that's a short amount of time. When you get nearer to the end of your career, you see it with footballers, for instance, the closer they get to the end, the more they seem to love the game. ANDY MURRAY: Yeah, I think, you know, you do start to reflect a little bit more, yeah, on previous years. That's for sure. Yeah, I mean, I realized a little bit when I had my back surgery, when I was going through that. Especially last year, you know, the first sort of nine months really of last year were very, very difficult and I wasn't enjoying it so much. I kind of realized at the end of last year that I don't know if I'll ever get the chance to play at the top level again, so I need to do everything possible that I can, you know, my training, really dedicate myself 100% to the time I have left. Obviously I want to try to enjoy it as best as I can. I mean, a lot of the sort of ex‑players that I've heard talk about it, the ones I've spoken to, have said, At the end really make sure you get every last ounce out of yourself because these will be the best years of your life. It doesn't get better when you finish playing (smiling). So enjoy it as best you can. Q. When you speak about this sort of changing mindset, several of the headlines mentioned the feminine influence on your life, particularly over the last year. How would you describe the changes that both Mauresmo and your marriage have brought to you? ANDY MURRAY: I mean, I've said as well, it's not so much marriage. Me and Kim have been together like 10 years now, so... You know, she's always been a huge support to me, especially when I've gone through, you know, tough, tough times as well. She's always been there for me. Obviously, yeah, I mean, Amélie, really the last sort of 12 months that I've been with her, I feel like I've come through some difficult moments. I feel last year, there was‑ not me, myself‑ I know there were a lot of people doubting me. I feel like she stuck with me during that period. I had an extremely tough loss at the end of last year. She was one of the people that really, yeah, stuck by me and supported me. I'm glad that I've been able to kind of repay her faith in me with some good tennis this year. Obviously she's a very different character to some of the coaches that I've had in the past. I've really enjoyed working with her. Q. Has this affected your confidence in a positive way? ANDY MURRAY: I think there's a lot of things that go into kind of self‑confidence or self‑esteem, whatever you want to call it. Yeah, like I said, she's obviously clearly had an influence on that. You know, other members of my team have also influenced that. Winning tennis matches always, always helps. I think in any sport, winning gives you confidence. You know, this year I've won a lot of matches ‑ more than I ever have in my career to this point in a season. It's been a good start this year. Hope I can keep it up. Q. With your appreciation, not just of tennis, but a variety of sports, what is your perspective on Serena as she pursues a possible Grand Slam in one year and her place among all athletes? ANDY MURRAY: Well, I mean, she's a phenomenal athlete across all sports.  The stuff that she's done is obviously incredible. I have a lot of respect for everything that she's done for the sport. In terms of what she's trying to achieve this year, I think the easiest thing to do is to kind of get ahead of yourself. I think a lot of people are doing that. You know, I'm getting asked questions about her winning four slams in one year. She still hasn't played her first round here. She's only halfway there. Grass is a very, very tough surface to win on, especially over three sets. Because you play badly for 30 minutes and a match can be over. So I think the most important thing for her is just to concentrate on each match and play. If she does that, doesn't think too far ahead, I believe she's the best player in the world, and she can do it. But very easy to look ahead, I think, in these situations. Q. Doing something you've never done before is always an achievement. You've never even got to a clay court final before. Suddenly you win two clay court titles in seven days. How much of a boost to your self‑confidence was that overall? ANDY MURRAY: Yeah, it was very important. You know, I changed my clay court schedule a lot this year. Obviously, it was very different to previous years. A lot of that was also down to the communication with my team, as well. I didn't actually feel like I played that well in Munich, but I managed to win the event. It gave me big confidence going into Madrid. Yeah, obviously ended up having my best clay court season by far. So, yeah, winning that first event in Munich, even though it was a smaller event, made a big difference to my confidence, especially on that surface. Q. I don't know how many newspapers you've read or any websites, but there's a lot of people that are tipping you to win this tournament. How aware are you of that and how do you not let it affect you? ANDY MURRAY: Well, most important thing is to concentrate on your first match really, and prepare for that. You know, like I was saying with the situation that Serena's in, it's very easy to get carried away and look ahead, think, I'm playing great tennis, everything's going to be fine. But the reality is it doesn't really matter what's happened the rest of the year or in the buildup to the event as I think Stan proved at the French Open. You have to make sure you're ready each day for every opponent that you come up against. I'm certainly not getting carried away. I know how difficult these events are to win. I just concentrate on the first match and try my best to get through that one. Q. When you hired Jonas earlier this year, how important was his grass court experience in that decision? ANDY MURRAY: You know, only really once before had I kind of employed someone based on their, like, experience on one surface, and that was when I started working with Alex Corretja to help me with my clay court game. But, yeah, when I approached Jonas, I knew him extremely well. Some of the things I wanted to work on in my game I felt like he could help me with because of his experience and playing that way, trying to come forward more, being aggressive on the returns. He was extremely good at that. That was really the reason to start working with him. It wasn't based on him playing good tennis on grass courts. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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