WIMBLEDON

July 6, 2003

Mark Philippoussis

MODERATOR: Mark Philippoussis for you.

MARK PHILIPPOUSSIS: Yeah, obviously, you know, there's a lot of positive things I can take away. You know, it's been a great tournament for me. But, unfortunately, I fell one short. But I'll be back.

MARK PHILIPPOUSSIS: He did play extremely well, yeah. He definitely played better than me on the day. You know, that first tiebreaker was huge, to get the momentum going. And, you know, I was up a mini break in that 4-3, I missed a forehand and double-faulted. You know, costed me the first tiebreaker.

MARK PHILIPPOUSSIS: I don't know. I think he played well today. I don't know if, you know -- I haven't watched a lot of his matches, but I thought he played well today.

MARK PHILIPPOUSSIS: I mean, wouldn't say it was my best match out there. So, you know, definitely played better.

MARK PHILIPPOUSSIS: No, I mean once that set was over, you know, I thought about the next set and, you know, I just pressed a little and I guess pressed too much. But there are things I'm gonna learn from and things I have to work on, so...

MARK PHILIPPOUSSIS: I felt pretty good. I wasn't too nervous, to be quite honest. I felt pretty good out there.

MARK PHILIPPOUSSIS: I looked what?

MARK PHILIPPOUSSIS: I don't know what I looked like from the TV, but I didn't feel too bad at all. I don't know what I looked like, so...

MARK PHILIPPOUSSIS: Well, you know, my first serve percentage wasn't that high. You know, I wasn't returning as well as I wanted to. But, you know, I think that, you know, that first set was big. I think whoever won that first set was gonna go on a roll and the other person was -- gonna get a lot more confident. Obviously, the other person would be a lot more down. It definitely gets the momentum going. That's what happened after the first set.

MARK PHILIPPOUSSIS: I can't really say I did much wrong. Definitely, your first serves, when they go, they help. But he came up with some great passing shots, running forehand, backhand returns. You know, what can you do?

MARK PHILIPPOUSSIS: I don't know if he's gonna, you know, dominate. He's definitely a great player. There's a lot of great players out there. So as far as someone dominating the game, you know, I don't think that will happen. There's a lot of great players out there.

MARK PHILIPPOUSSIS: It was a little disappointing, but, you know, I've lost the first set before. I've lost the first two sets and, you know, I'm never gonna give up. Obviously, it's a little disappointing, but you forget about it and you think about what's ahead of you.

MARK PHILIPPOUSSIS: No, it was no reaction. He came out and just was on momentum from the first set and it just showed, I think.

MARK PHILIPPOUSSIS: It was definitely something that's gonna help me in the future. So, you know, Goran was in the final three times before he won it. So, you know, I'm never gonna give up. Obviously, I'm disappointed, but there's a lot of positive things I can take away. And I'm definitely gonna hold that trophy up before I retire. That's for sure.

MARK PHILIPPOUSSIS: Well, I mean, there's a lot of things. For the two weeks, you know, the match against Andre, two sets to love down against Popp, breakpoint down to be in the fifth, you know, there's a lot of positive things. You know, I -- you know, I've been working really hard to get here, and this is just the beginning for me. You know, I'm only gonna be keener and eager after what happened today and more pumped up. It's not like -- sure, I'm gonna have a bit of a time off, but I think, to be quite honest, as soon as I get back, I'll be looking forward to getting into my fitness, just getting stronger, looking forward to the American summer.

MARK PHILIPPOUSSIS: He just said, "This is just the beginning. I mean, look where you were 18 months ago." A year ago I was struggling to get into tournaments. Now, you know, this is just the start of many things to come.

MARK PHILIPPOUSSIS: I think he is. He's definitely an inspiration to a lot of guys. I mean, you definitely have to feel for the guy. Someone who's been in the final three times. I guess you'd have to say it's almost like destiny he had to win it before he retired. You can't really say that someone deserves to win more than anyone else because everyone works extremely hard and everyone wants to win, but if there was one person that you'd say that does deserve a tournament, it would be him with this tournament.

MARK PHILIPPOUSSIS: Uhm, you know, I'm definitely gonna come back and I'm gonna be a lot stronger. That's for sure.

MARK PHILIPPOUSSIS: Yes, definitely. Definitely more determined. It's not easy sitting back and looking at your opponent holding up the cup and the trophy. It's definitely made me more determined.

MARK PHILIPPOUSSIS: Well, he's a talented player. Obviously, he, you know, is very talented. He can do everything. On the court, he's comfortable with serve and volleying, as he showed today. So simple, you know, when you have a great day, everything looks great, everything's perfect. So he definitely deserved today.

MARK PHILIPPOUSSIS: I'm definitely not looking -- even thinking about that.

MARK PHILIPPOUSSIS: I'm just gonna go back to San Diego and just go surfing. That's all I'll think about.

MARK PHILIPPOUSSIS: No, you guys were close, but not close enough (laughter).

MARK PHILIPPOUSSIS: Yeah, I heard about that. That's great. I wish I could have given them something a little more to yell about. I'm sure they've had some beers. They'd have been happy enough.

MARK PHILIPPOUSSIS: No, sorry, I'm a short boarder, yeah.