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NITTO ATP FINALS

November 17, 2017

David Goffin

London, England, United Kingdom

D. GOFFIN/D. Thiem

6-4, 6-1

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. You played very well recently, but against Roger you had problems in Basel. He beat you easily. He says he likes you as a person but also likes to play against you. What do you have to change tomorrow compared to the match in Basel?
DAVID GOFFIN: I've never found a key to beat Roger. Honestly, I don't know what to do tomorrow. But I'm going to try something, something different, something that I've never done in the past. Yeah, I will try to do my best to play a better match than in Basel, for sure.

In Basel, it was not easy. He played well. He didn't miss. He was really aggressive, as always. He returned so well. So it was not easy in Basel.

I hope that tomorrow he's not going to play the same match. But I will try something different for sure, yeah.

Q. I remember years some of the players had to go to the Davis Cup Final, and they usually lost in the round-robin. I think it's good to win always, Davis Cup or ATP, whatever.
DAVID GOFFIN: Yeah, before this tournament I wanted just to give my best, to give everything because is such an honor. I'm so happy to be part of the top 8. I wanted to be 110% here, try to play my best tennis, to try to qualify, of course. That's what I did.

I will play the semifinal and maybe another match after, then I will go in Lille with the team. First of all, it will be the semifinal. I will try to give everything. I will have few days to be ready for the Davis Cup.

Q. You started off getting down 0-1. You couldn't find your backhand, you were missing several meters. Were you feeling physically okay? Did it take a few games to find your game? Can you tell us a bit about what happened between the first three games and the rest of the match?
DAVID GOFFIN: Yeah, I started okay. I was hitting the ball well, some good points. I was serving okay also. But Dominic didn't miss, didn't miss a lot. He served well.

My service game was not a bad service game, even if it was a love game, I think. Yeah, I knew that I was in the match, so I didn't panic after the first three games because he served well. I knew in the past I have the return to break him. I knew I will have some opportunity to break him.

I did it right after the first three games. After that, I started to feel much better with my return, and I played well until the end of the first set.

Q. Since the US Open, you have been wearing protection on your left knee. Has it been causing any discomfort this week? Are you concerned playing on the tour with your knee taped that it will cause any more problems long-term?
DAVID GOFFIN: First of all, I'm playing with the tape since the US Open because it helps me to feel better with the tape. I prefer to keep it until the end of the season.

Davis Cup, just before I decided to play, I need some rest, still feeling sometimes my knee, and I need some rest since the Davis Cup in September. That's why I started to play every week, I took the decision to play with the tape, to play every tournament. That was the good choice. If you see the last couple months of the season and the semifinal here, it was a good choice. I will try to fight like that until the end.

I will need some rest for my knee, that's for sure.

Q. You obviously have already beaten Rafa on this surface here this week. That's kind of his weakest surface, whereas for Roger, he's not lost a match on this surface in 2017, looks pretty formidable.
DAVID GOFFIN: It is.

Q. Does that thing play on a player's mind how you'd approach a came with Roger, playing him on his favorite surface, as opposed to facing Rafa on his weakest surface? Does that change your game plan?
DAVID GOFFIN: Yes, of course, it's going to change my game plan. I had a small idea how good he is on this surface in Basel. But, yeah, Rafa and Roger, they have completely different games. Yeah, I played Rafa this year on clay court and on this surface, and it was completely different matches. The rebound is higher on clay, it's heavier. It's tough to control the ball on the clay. Here it is a little bit easier. There is no bad bounce. You can take the ball earlier. He defends a little bit. Yeah, he's defending much better on clay. He can slide.

Against Roger, on his best surface, it's indoor. It's this surface, along with the grass. There is no wind. It's tough to play higher, to find the loop when you play here on this kind of surface. It's not easy. It's perfect for Roger.

But I will try, like I said, to do my best tomorrow to find some solutions, try to play my game, yeah, be aggressive. If he's aggressive and he hit the ball really hard with his forehand, he's dangerous.

Q. You played very well in Asia and also indoors. Do you maybe even fell fresher than in other seasons because of your injury from Paris? Could it on the backside be an advantage for this big event and the Davis Cup Final?
DAVID GOFFIN: On this knee, I don't know. Maybe if I was 100% this summer, in Wimbledon, without my injury, maybe I would be dead at the moment. I don't know.

I just try to play match after match. I don't think about how well I'm feeling, if I'm 100%, if I'm fresh mentally. There is just maximum five matches until the end of the season for me. I will try to play match after match and try to win as much as I can and do my best.

But, yeah, the little period at home during Wimbledon, yeah, it could make a difference now at the end of the season.

Q. What is it about your game that is such a good matchup for Thiem? Were you surprised he fell away so quickly after you came back in the first set?
DAVID GOFFIN: Yeah, I was a little bit surprised how well he started the match. He was moving well. He used his slice a little bit. He changed the pace. He was good. He started to play well.

But I knew that, yeah, I found solution in the past. I knew with my return I can be really aggressive from my return. I knew it was the key to come back. As soon as I came back at 3-All with a good service game, I knew that he was struggling a little bit with his groundstrokes. He was hitting too hard maybe a little bit. He lost his timing in his backhands. He started to think about how to hit the ball.

I have a small idea how it is when it's like that (smiling). Yeah, I knew that any second I had to be really solid and don't miss, to finish the match.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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