U.S. OPEN

September 3, 1995

Michael Tebbutt

MICHAEL TEBBUTT: Yeah, easily. I've only had two -- well, besides this week, two others. It's the biggest match of my life, so. .

MICHAEL TEBBUTT: I was very -- I was very out of it at the beginning of the fourth set after I lost the tiebreaker, and my mind wasn't really focused and I got through those games and held and then towards the end of the fifth my legs were -- weren't moving that well, but, you know, I didn't want to lose, so... But I was fine towards the end. I wasn't nervous or anything. I was -- I had nothing to lose, so I just went for it.

MICHAEL TEBBUTT: I don't know. Usually I get nervous in a situation like that, but I've just been so into it that I was just so focused, you know. It's something I dreamed of -- that situation is something you dream of and it's the first time I've really been in that, besides when I played Chang at Wimbledon two years ago -- last year, and it's something you dream about so I was really into it.

MICHAEL TEBBUTT: No, my serve -- I started this year I served unbelievable. Even though my second serve was dodgey but -- and then from, like, May to pretty much this week, before this week, my serve went somewhere else and I gave my first serve and I had no confidence and I couldn't win a match. But this week I'm serving big first and second serve is very consistent, few doublefaults and I feel confident to hit it. I used -- it's a weird thing, I was playing well at the start here and all of a sudden my confidence went somewhere else and all of it a sudden it's back. Just takes a couple wins.

MICHAEL TEBBUTT: I'm glad it came to this one. We could have played all night. I mean, no one was really -- we were holding serve, you know. There's only what two breaks in the whole match and makes it more exciting for the fans. I don't know, you could have arguments for it either way. But this week -- I mean, today was good for me, I guess.

MICHAEL TEBBUTT: Well, I was very lucky that my first round was against Anders who hasn't been playing that well, you know, he's getting on in age and plays mostly doubles now. If I would have played someone who would have been playing good I probably wouldn't have one to be honest, because I had no confidence that first match. And then all of a sudden the second match my serve just came out of nowhere. I guess you have expectations, you have nothing to lose, might have been a bonus.

MICHAEL TEBBUTT: Well, I think if I serve like that I have a good chance against anybody. I don't know about Agassi or Sampras or maybe Becker, they're another league. I never played any of those guys. I don't know how I'd match up against them. I played Chang and Todd, and whoever wins that match I feel I have a good chance against any one of them if I serve well and keep my concentration.

MICHAEL TEBBUTT: Well, I've got doubles. Hopefully it will be late. I just won't practice too much. It will be tough coming back from a five setter, I haven't played too many and I feel pretty tired right now. But I think so, you know, I've got two days before I play the next match. I hope I'm ready.

MICHAEL TEBBUTT: Pardon?

MICHAEL TEBBUTT: I've actually just started with a guy, his name is Craig Purcell (ph). He started last week and we played tennis together at the university, he's like exactly a month older than me. And he's been around tennis a long time. He was a very good junior in the U.S. for a number of years. He finished his college tennis and he just did, like, graduate degree. And he was staying at Flagstaff with his girlfriend who -- and I go back there a lot, which is where I went to school. And we ended -- me and Jamie Morgan was with Ken Richardson and that ended. It was going well for a while but Jamie wasn't happy with it or he felt he needed a change and it was too expensive for me to keep Ken on, so Craig works a little bit cheaper and it's good to have him around because he's a good friend and he's a good motivator and he does know a lot about the game even though he hasn't been around as long as say Ken Richardson.

MICHAEL TEBBUTT: Purcell. He's not related to me, no.

MICHAEL TEBBUTT: Ken Richardson. He is from Australia, from Sydney.

MICHAEL TEBBUTT: I started with Ken at Wimbledon and I went until last week, actually. We've no coach and Craig started here. He was a head pro at a country club in Flagstaff for the summer and as soon as he finished with that he joined me a week and a half, two weeks ago.

MICHAEL TEBBUTT: Yeah, of course.

MICHAEL TEBBUTT: Well, I've played a big one in Washington early this summer and there was 7,000 people and it was a big stadium and I was gagging and I wasn't hitting through the shots. And hopefully if it happens again, you know, I've had that experience and I'll be more ready. I haven't played on too many stadiums and the court is -- seems a lot smaller because there's so much space around it, so if you haven't played a lot, it's hard. But hopefully I'm able to deal with that.

MICHAEL TEBBUTT: Well, it's not a serve that you really teach, I think it just came. It's kind of a -- all my game is not that natural. I guess it's natural, it's not really taught. But yeah, I guess it came just came naturally. I can't remember how my serve evolved out of time, but -- I can't remember whether or not I had a good serve in juniors, but as I grew and where I went to school it was high elevation, so I guess I must have worked on my serve over there. It just came together.

MICHAEL TEBBUTT: Yeah, right from the start. When I was 15 someone tried to -- well, Ken tried to change it and I tried it for two months but it wasn't working so I just went back to it. I never changed.

MICHAEL TEBBUTT: I don't now -- it's unnatural is a good way to put it. It's a definite advantage, people aren't used to playing that way. And my game is very, you know, hit or miss, I guess. I have plays -- I can bring players down to my level because it's either I have hitter or miss, so it's hard for them to deal with that when I am just sort of free swinging.

MICHAEL TEBBUTT: Yeah. Well, I went to college for four years and so I didn't go through the natural -- I mean, I was like in tennis in Australia and I've had some good wins but then I've lost the very next match. This is the first time I've one three matches in a row and it's been a level tournament, so it's a new experience.

MICHAEL TEBBUTT: This week?

MICHAEL TEBBUTT: Like what do I like to do?

MICHAEL TEBBUTT: I'm learning the guitar, I like going out and seeing live music. I like to go out and relax and not sit in the hotel room. This week I haven't been doing too much, just been going out to eat, so I try to relax as much as possible. But usually I like to go out and not be confined to a hotel room and it's more -- it relaxes me more that way. Some players can do it, but I like to go out and just do other things.