PILOT PEN INTERNATIONAL

August 21, 1998

Leander Paes

Q. Was that one match too many?

LEANDER PAES: I was a little tired after yesterday playing singles and doubles. I really think that the difference was Goran's serve versus mine. He serves a lot better than I did and I had to work twice as hard on his service games and I don't think I even got to breakpoint.

LEANDER PAES: Well, yesterday against Pete who has another huge serve, I wanted just to get the serve back. I wanted to start the point out. Regardless of whether he had an easy ball or easy volley, whatever, just start the point out; then let my speed take over. Today I struggled to get the serve back. Especially on second serves, every time I had a second serve that I tried to chip and charge, I was missing a lot; playing a left-hander today the ball was kicking differently, so I found it a little tough to adjust. And I think that really made the key. But I could not really get into a groove of chipping and charging and playing my style of tennis today.

LEANDER PAES: Again, I kind of get up for every match. I felt that in the end, like the beginning of the second set, I had to force myself to say: Come on, let's get on with it, and I had to give myself a little bit of a push so that was the only time that I found myself maybe slipping a little and I said: Let's go, let us pick it up. I was able to, but not enough, I guess, today.

LEANDER PAES: I think that if he serves as well as he did today, he has a good shot at it. In conditions like this, if someone starts getting his serve back, makes himself working for the point, it will be tough. But I think after today's result, especially after he beat me, he does have a good shot.

LEANDER PAES: Definitely. Again, for the last couple of years, doubles was basically earning me my living; playing Davis Cup for the country and stuff helped, but I enjoyed playing doubles with my partner and we are No. 3 right now so we are looking at Hartford fairly closely, having lost the first round here, that doesn't really help our cause, but we have got the rest of the year ahead of us. Got one Grand Slam left and we need to get our act together.

LEANDER PAES: Well, the cutoff comes up, I think, like three weeks before the event, so basically we have still got a lot of work to do. We are No. 3 right now, so, as of right now we are in -- the top 8 teams go there, as you all know. As I said, there is a lot of tennis still to be played and especially having to handle singles and doubles, it is more challenging for me, so we have got to prepare our schedule very, very carefully.

LEANDER PAES: I generally find myself -- sure I was very happy after winning yesterday, but I don't really go too high or too low. I just -- it was a good day at the office yesterday and not so good today, so I come out and try and do my best, I come out and try and work and do whatever I can do within my capacity and I have had a great week overall. It would have been nice to have been playing doubles this afternoon, but I guess that is the way it goes. I can't complain, I had a good win yesterday.

LEANDER PAES: No, I am taking the week off. I am just recovering from this cough cold and stuff that I had and the Open being best of five sets in singles and doubles, I figure that physically I just need to get myself ready, so I am taking next week off. I will be on Long Island just training and having some fun there and maybe hit the links a little bit and get ready for the Open.

LEANDER PAES: Yes, we are both together in long island. Yeah.