	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

BNP PARIBAS OPEN

March 11, 2017

Vasek Pospisil

Indian Wells, California

V. POSPISIL/A. Murray

6-4, 7-6

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. Just a few weeks or so ago you were playing in the final of a pro circuit in a small venue, losing to a little- known Chinese player. Today you beat the No. 1 player in the world. Talk about how you're feeling, and how incredible this sport is, its ups and downs.
VASEK POSPISIL: Yeah -- well, that's a lot. Yeah, amazing feeling. Obviously, you know, it happened pretty quick. I feel like on a comeback trail. I had a tough year last year for many, many different reasons. I feel the last couple months I really found my hunger and my motivation to be back on the court training hard again.

So I'm just -- I have been very pleased with that, more than anything, the last few weeks, the last couple of months.

You know, I felt like a big result was coming, because I believe in my abilities, but just kind of had to put the pieces together again. Obviously to beat the No. 1 player in the world is incredible. I mean, it's the biggest win of my career, and I'm just thrilled right now.

Q. How does this compare to the Wimbledon doubles?
VASEK POSPISIL: Well, I don't know. It's hard to compare the two. Obviously, Wimbledon title is pretty incredible, but having a win over World No. 1 is equally so.

I don't know. It's tough to compare those two. They are definitely highlights of my career. If I pick a handful of great moments of my career, I mean, this is definitely one of them, to beat No. 1 player and somebody as accomplished as Andy, one of the greats of the game.

Q. In a nutshell, what are those many, many things that you think were not going right for you that maybe you have been able to clean up?
VASEK POSPISIL: Oh, just personal things, professional things. Obviously, I don't really want to get into all of the details, but it was a very distracting year, a lot of stuff going on off the court.

Just wasn't myself really, or, you know, the player that I have been my whole career, loving competition and being out there. Just kind of went through a little bit of a lull personally, and just kind of found my hunger again.

You know, that actually lasted for a very long time, almost the whole year, a long period of time. I learned a lot about myself. And, honestly, it was a good year in that aspect if I look at it. I feel like I came out a little bit more wise about life, about myself. I think that's why I'm, you know, also now enjoying my time on the court so much more these days.

You know, the last few months I have been kind of stopping myself during matches and realizing how happy I am to even be competing and playing tennis.

So I think last year was a learning process, learning curve. I think that everybody goes through it to some degree. I mean, I think everybody has those kind of periods in their lives, and mine was last year. I hope it won't be a repeat, but, yeah, so...

Q. How did you see the match from your side? How did it evolve? You were down a break in the first set. More or less take us through it.
VASEK POSPISIL: Yeah, I was -- yeah, I went down a break. I didn't feel like -- I started a little bit kind of tentative or, I don't know, kind of just trying to get into the match. And I just felt well.

Even going down a break, I think, two times or -- yeah, I think I went down two times. Each time I'd say, Well, I'll go point by point and I can break Andy back. Just trying to stay focused on competing well.

And then I was getting -- you know, I felt like I was playing better as the match was going on, especially in that first set.

And then, yeah, I was just kind of sticking to the game plan and kind of distracting my mind with what I wanted to do on the court. Of course, you know, still some thoughts come in, especially in the second set. You know, it's not every day you're close to beating the No. 1 player in the world.

So I did well to kind of stick with the process and not really get distracted and Andy being a bit off today.

Q. Just talk about your serve-and-volley game and how it seemed like you were really aggressive throughout the entire match. Especially in the tiebreak you were going for it, weren't holding back.
VASEK POSPISIL: Yeah, that was the main thing. I was telling myself, especially in the tiebreak, I was saying, I'm -- whatever the score is, I don't want to have any regrets. I don't want to come out of the match, thinking, Oh, why did I play a passive point when I'm playing one of the best baseliners ever, you know, just loves long points.

I didn't want to have regrets. If I lose this tiebreak, I would have been okay with it if I had tried to take my chances. Hence, the serve and volley on the second serve, I thought he would just want to make the return.

So, yeah, I just did well to just, yeah, keep focused on what I wanted to do on playing aggressive and taking it to him, coming into the net, kind of giving him different looks. Played a little bit differently than I did playing against him in previous times. It worked out well tonight.

Q. Andy said he's struggled here, lost four times his first match. You have been in the doubles finals here the last two years. How do you think familiarity and success here, how much do you think that kind of helps and played into tonight?
VASEK POSPISIL: Yeah, I think it definitely helped, a combination of all those things definitely. Maybe Andy not liking the conditions here. I played him here a couple years ago, and he took me out pretty easily.

But, yeah, knowing that obviously helps and having good results here in doubles in the past. But I have also kind of had a bittersweet relationship with the conditions here, sometimes, feeling, Oh, I like the way it plays. Other times, I am not really controlling it.

But, of course, knowing that maybe Andy doesn't like these conditions as much, you know, if that's what he says and maybe his results in the past show, then definitely that helped me get, you know, a little bit more belief today.

Q. Also, working with Mark, since he lives here, did you come out early to work in the area and does that help as well?
VASEK POSPISIL: I think so. I spent the offseason here, and I was -- I was one of the first here at the event coming from quallies and also Mark living here. So I think it was me and maybe three other guys that were here first. So I think that may have definitely helped. I mean, can't hurt, right?

But, yeah, I have been working on some good stuff with Mark. And I think tonight was kind of, yeah, some evidence for me, anyways, that things are going in the right direction.

Q. Did you work at Mission Hills? What does Mark bring to your game?
VASEK POSPISIL: Yeah, we worked out at Mission Hills. Yeah, Mark, he's a wise -- a wise coach. He's a wise guy. (Laughter.) No. No.

Yeah, he has a lot of wisdom and he's been around for many years. He was a great singles player himself. Doubles, obviously, that goes without saying, one of the doubles greats.

But he was a very accomplished singles player, and I felt like he could, you know, help me kind of discover more about my game and how I want to play. He's been, you know, a great addition, and I'm very pleased with the progress that we have made so far.

Obviously everything takes time. So the first couple months we were still learning a lot about each other, and now it seems that things are going the right direction.

Q. How did the connection with Mark come about? As a second part, how do you put this to one side and not suffer any sort of a letdown going into the next match?
VASEK POSPISIL: Sorry, what was the first part of the question?

Q. How did the connection with Mark...
VASEK POSPISIL: Yeah. Well, last year, I made an announcement with my previous coach. We mutually decided to kind of part ways after -- you know, we wanted to have a good year in 2016, and that wasn't the case. So we just kind of agreed that we'd part ways. We made the announcement.

And then Mark's name came up. He came forward and -- to the Davis Cup captain and mentioned he'd be interested. And so I was obviously thrilled with that. And I had a couple of options, and then finally, you know, decided to go with Mark, because I felt that his experience and I liked the way he was speaking and his, you know, vision for my game.

So that's kind of just how that happened. Obviously I was taking my time. Didn't want to rush into any decisions. So I waited for the end of the year to make that call.

And then in terms of the letdown now, I mean, -- well, it helps to have a day off tomorrow. Not only -- just because it's late now, and I have been playing some matches. So I will rest a little bit, which is going to be nice.

But, yeah, honestly I just -- I'm going to enjoy this tonight, and obviously tomorrow morning I'm going to wake up and almost try to forget about it as much as possible.

Might sound strange. But it's the process now. And just think about my next match. Tonight I will just enjoy this, for sure. And maybe after the tournament, I'll look back at it, maybe.

But from tomorrow, I'm just going to try to focus on my next opponent who is a good one. I mean, I have played him before, and he's a good competitor. So it's going to be a good opportunity for both of us, and I will try to go out there and try to play the same way I have been playing.

Q. How much did the Mischa Zverev match with Andy at the Australian Open, was that a blueprint for you?
VASEK POSPISIL: Well, I did see the match. I did see the match.

So I mean, maybe you could say -- maybe it was more like a little bit of out of belief that that kind of game style -- that would have been the game style I would have taken regardless of how Mischa played. But, you know, maybe that was one thing, Oh, maybe a little bit more confidence that he had done it that way.

But it's just one of my strengths. So it's not like -- you know, some players don't like to come in, so it's not like they are going to watch Mischa and say, Oh, yeah, I'm going to do it.

It just happens to be one of my strong points, as well, to come into the net and serve and volley, which I haven't been utilizing as much as I could be, could have over the years, but it's definitely, I would say, one of my strong points and it helped to see Mischa for sure, but it didn't -- honestly, I wouldn't have played any differently. It's hard. Interesting.

Q. What did you do best tonight? What are you most proud of tonight?
VASEK POSPISIL: What did I do best? I'd say not letting him get into a rhythm, not letting him feel the conditions. At least, but that's what I was trying to do. I was trying to kind of be a little bit unpredictable and not play long points. Playing some long points -- you know, so I was just sticking to the game plan. I guess I was most proud of that, especially at the end of the second set, not getting discouraged. You know, being up a break and having a chance to be up two breaks, and just kind of, you know, keeping my head down and keeping up with what I was doing.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297