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LAVER CUP

September 21, 2019

Geneva, Switzerland

R. FEDERER/N. Kyrgios

6-7, 7-5, 10-7

Team Europe - 5

Team World - 3

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. Before the Laver Cup, did you have some thoughts that the players will take as an exhibition? And are you surprised that they are taking it so extremely seriously? Like Nick, for example, he's extremely focused on every single match during the Laver Cup this year and the previous ones.
ROGER FEDERER: Yeah, that's true. I mean, yeah, legitimate question. You know, I believe in the players, that we like to play good tennis and we like to win. We don't have draws like in other sport where you can just put, kind of just play for a draw.

Every time you win, it's a good feeling and you've got to take them when they come. That's why I believed that it was going to happen.

What surprised me more is the camaraderie that we have on the bench. I thought it was going to be hard to keep the guys out, that they all wanted to go back to the hotel, do their thing, be in the rhythm, that it was maybe not going to be so much a team away from it all, that it was going to be more forced.

But everybody is super happy to spend time together. Everybody recognizes how important it is to have as many players there as possible supporting.

But I didn't worry too much about the quality of tennis on the court, because I think if you put a top player in front of 20,000 people, you're not going to be just playing a hit-and-giggle and clowning around. You're going to play your best tennis.

Then you have people like me, you have people like Björn and John there, you know, reminding them, you know, Can you please try to play your best tennis? And Rod Laver is watching on, and you want to impress. I was not too concerned.

Q. Going into today's matches, did you anticipate that you would eventually be facing such kind of pressure? And how did you deal with it throughout the match?
ROGER FEDERER: Yeah, no, I expected it this way. I knew it was going to be tough for Sascha against John. It's always tough for anybody against him, especially when he gets the energy going like he did in the super-tiebreaker.

I think that also that performance by John inspired me a little bit to keep on believing harder that if I did turn it around in the second set that also momentum would swing and the crowd would really, really get into it. I mean, the house almost came down, it was that loud. So that was something very special for me.

I was actually feeling all right, you know, in the match. It's just unfortunate I lost that first set. And then maybe I was in a bit of a lull in the second set but was able to stay positive in my mind. I was just trying to find the balance, to be honest, in my own game.

No, I expected it to be tough. And, yeah, it didn't disappoint. The guys are good, so it's always going to be hard.

Q. When you're playing a match like that and you're in the middle of a match like that, what is the feeling like in your home? You don't get to play at home that often, and you have a crowd that's more like a football crowd. How much does it add to the motivation?
ROGER FEDERER: Regardless of the score now, just in general?

Yeah, it's amazing, you know. You always hope for these moments where you can look back on your career and felt like -- wherever the special moments, you know, because clearly not every match can be, not every practice can be, but you can try to create as many moments as possible.

That today was something nice, very special for me. Don't take them for granted. You know, if I would have retired a long time ago, I wouldn't have this this moment right now today, so it was worth it maybe because of a moment like this also to stay on the tour and give myself chances to maybe experience something like this or win tournaments.

I mean, I had goosebumps during the game. I can't deny that. I'm not immune to it. Yeah, I'm just very happy that I get to feel this in my home country. Yeah, it's special.

Q. You've played in some quite major venues. How does the atmosphere here compare when you have the 17,000 people in a prefab almost?
ROGER FEDERER: Yeah, I mean, look, they're all, yeah, like you said, very different. A lot of people ask, my fans me, So which one is your favorite place to play, which arena, which city, which country?

It's really, really hard for me to pick it, you know. And I say I think the combination of each and every place being different is the beauty of our sport, because I tell them, I don't want it to be Wimbledon every week, as much as I love Wimbledon, as you know, but I want it to be Geneva or I want it to be, you know, US Open night session, or I want it to be, I don't know, a great match in Dubai. Or you name it. It could be anywhere.

Because every crowd reacts different to amazing shot-making, pressure moments. Some scream more, like in Asia. Some clap more, like in Australia. Some yell more, like maybe in South America. So maybe from that standpoint, I have no real preferred place.

Q. As a scale.
ROGER FEDERER: As a scale, as in size?

Q. Size and noise.
ROGER FEDERER: The question is what? Which one is the highest and the loudest? I mean, today was extremely loud. I don't recall that on the tour ever being almost this loud.

I think it helps to be indoors, sure. But the moment when I hit the reflex volley there, that was something crazy.

I remember Bogota, when I played an XO in Colombia, when I walked on court, I was scared (smiling). So this reminded me of this. Those were maybe my two loudest moments, and one I had today. So I'm very happy.

Q. I'd like to know if you remember all the important points or some of the important points of your life, not just the wins. But today from 2-All to 5-2, you played three unbelievable points, not just the reaction volley but also the other following one. For cinema, for the next generation, it would be very good to show them. Andre Agassi, years ago, was able to remember points that he played 10 years earlier, just what he did, what happened. Does it happen to you too to remember certain points in certain moments of your career like those ones of today?
ROGER FEDERER: I mean, now I don't even remember the three (smiling). But it might come back, you know. I'm like a lizard, you know. I know it right then and then I forget right away.

But no. Do I remember, you know, the tough point at deuce at 4-3 against Rafa, you know, in the fifth? Yeah, I do. Do I remember some other big ones? Yes, I do.

But a lot do come back through seeing them again. It's like when you're a child, you see pictures of when you were young. You're, like, Yeah, I remember that, but actually maybe you only think you do because you saw the pictures.

It's a bit, for me, similar to that. I didn't remember that we (looking at Thomas) played in -- where did we play, Rotterdam? I didn't remember that game today, because I asked him, Where did we play?

I don't even remember the score. You won that match?

VICE-CAPTAIN THOMAS ENQVIST: You won.

ROGER FEDERER: I won? You see? There you go. I'm hit-and-miss at the moment. I'm a bit concerned (smiling).

Q. We saw that Rafa gave you some advices in difficult moments of the game. Did it help?
ROGER FEDERER: Well, absolutely. Look at the result (smiling). We did it, you know.

Yeah, I mean, I really enjoy his clarity in his advice. It reminded me very much and the match was extremely similar to the one in Prague against Nick.

It was a struggle from the baseline trying to find the right balance of how aggressive to play and whatnot. What I really enjoy with Rafa is just that we very often align, our ideas align. And obviously when it comes to rally points, he's excellent. You know, he knows how much is enough and how much is too much.

He's a great problem/solution-finder, how to get through that. I found it quite impressive in the doubles when I played with him, how he's constantly looking for a new way to win or stay on a certain track if he feels that winning or -- I think that is the true reason why he is the champion he is today, because he's not scared of changing a winning tactic, and he's also a big believer in investing. You know, and I do similar things, so it's very enjoyable to hear him speak, especially during the game.

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LAVER CUP

September 21, 2019

Roger Federer

Thomas Enqvist