TMS MONTE CARLO

April 22, 2001

Hicham Arazi

HICHAM ARAZI: He puts you immediately under pressure. He pushes you far behind the baseline. He plays very deep shots and very heavy shots, and you have to run a lot against him. He brings you far from the line and he finishes with a very clean shot and very difficult to play. We are standing about four, five meters behind the baseline, therefore, it's not obvious.

HICHAM ARAZI: In fact, I played him in other conditions. I played him in the first rounds, and he was not into the rhythm yet. But in the finals of a Masters Series, he picks up confidence from the former matches and he won many matches before and it's all the more difficult.

HICHAM ARAZI: Well.

HICHAM ARAZI: Little by little I was not feeling so good anymore.

HICHAM ARAZI: No. Generally, I do them and the others have to run. Here, I was really angry.

HICHAM ARAZI: Until that particular shot I was believing I could do better. I had 15-30 and I was almost able to come to 15-40 and have two break points and come back to the score in the third set. I'm not saying I could have been able to win the whole match, but at least I could have won the third set and maybe come back with that third set.

HICHAM ARAZI: I'm very happy that I reached the finals. I'm going to take two days' rest after that final because this morning when I woke up I was thinking I was going to play first round. I was not believing it. So I'm going to try to digest the situation during two or three days after this beautiful week, and I'm going to start over again to try to make good results, even better than here. Why not?

HICHAM ARAZI: Yes. Specifically the confidence. Because before I came to this tournament, I hadn't won many matches. After such a week, all the victories I had against Cedric, Sebastien, Henman and Norman, it's great results. Now everybody knows how to play tennis, and everything depends on 80 percent of what happens in your mind. Now I will feel good in my mind for the next tournaments. This tournament will help me a lot.

HICHAM ARAZI: It's difficult to answer. I never played other players who impressed me as much as he did today. I would maybe mention the name of Muster during his great period. There's not much to say about that match; he was a lot stronger than me and congratulations to him.

HICHAM ARAZI: Yes, Agassi on a different surface. I played him on hardcourts, and it's a bit the same impression I had. It's true.

HICHAM ARAZI: Kuerten is more classy in his game. He has more easiness. We had the impression the ball stops each time, and he's always well positioned. He has time to play. Myself, I had the impression I was running for many kilometers right and left.

HICHAM ARAZI: I'm going to take a six-month holiday. Tomorrow I'm going to Bermuda. (Laughing.) No, I'm going directly to Barcelona which is starting tomorrow and I hope they're going to give me a day's rest to start on Tuesday. Then there will be Rome and Hamburg, so two other Masters Series before I will start the French Open.

HICHAM ARAZI: I was five years old, but I don't know if I even hit the ball. It was with my father.

HICHAM ARAZI: I played with him until I was 14, 15.

HICHAM ARAZI: That's it.

HICHAM ARAZI: I believe the matches in five sets are much more exciting. You can always come back, even if you're two sets down. In another match, in three sets it's finished. In five sets, there are turning points in the match. The situation changes, and we saw several times a player losing the first two sets and being able to reverse the situation and come back on the score. Plus, I always played well in those matches, especially in Grand Slams where all the matches are the best-of-five. I prefer that. Today against Kuerten I didn't prefer that, because in the third set I was still running but I was tired.

HICHAM ARAZI: I think so. Both quarterfinals in Roland Garros and this final, so it's going to be two or three matches.

HICHAM ARAZI: No. And now there are other channels that people can watch.