DAVIS CUP - AUSTRALIA vs FRANCE

December 5, 1999

Cedric Pioline

ITF: Questions, please.

CEDRIC PIOLINE: Yes. I believe he played incredibly well. He tried for difficult shots on the lines, and he succeeded. He was a bit lucky also. But this is the game. He was very lucky.

CEDRIC PIOLINE: I think they supported me quite well after it was over. Of course, there's a personal satisfaction when you win. There's a lot of disappointment when you lose. But it's true what you say.

CEDRIC PIOLINE: It's half true because when we see how the crowd reacted, they were very demonstrative, expressive. The fact that I was playing and I lost, it was Pioline on the court; it was personal. Certain losses hurt a bit more than others.

CEDRIC PIOLINE: I believe he's been very solid from the beginning to the end. He attempted and took many risks. He tried difficult shots, and was lucky, especially in important moments. He tried, and he was successful. It would have been necessary for me to go even further, to push him to make a mistake. Apparently, I was not able to do that today.

CEDRIC PIOLINE: No, I don't think so. Especially in the last two sets, I think the score does not really show how close it was. I was down 5-All, and I had the opportunity to break him.

CEDRIC PIOLINE: I think Mark played a very good match today. He was very good everywhere. He was serving good, he was very consistent from the baseline. Maybe sometimes he was lucky with the net or with the lines. But I think he deserved the win today because he played a little bit better than me. I think he played a big, big match today.

CEDRIC PIOLINE: Yes, of course I listen to him. It was a difficult match. Guy was present all during the match. We realized that Philippoussis played well. He kept encouraging me and pushed me to play my best tennis. I had no problems with that. Very often I was down in the match and I was able to reverse the situation, so the important thing is to not believe that he plays too good for me. You have to fight till the end, and that's what I tried to do.

CEDRIC PIOLINE: Yes. I tried to prevent him from being comfortable with his own game, controlling the rallies with his big forehand. I made him run. I'm quite aggressive myself. I tried to answer by attacks to his shots.

CEDRIC PIOLINE: Globally, when I had the opportunities, I should have done a bit more. Some games I would have been able to be ahead in the score. I would have made him doubt. I would have pressured him more. I don't know if I would have been able to win, but I would have had a better result.

CEDRIC PIOLINE: There's no doubt he played extremely well this weekend. It's not because you have an excellent player across the next that you have to feel you are losing. You have to continue to play your game, believe in victory, to try to reverse the situation, turn it around like the Australians did yesterday in the doubles. You have to keep on believing. Sometimes it works. This is the basis of tennis.

CEDRIC PIOLINE: It's true that I gave many decisive points to the French team. Finally I lose the decisive point in this final. When you look back, when you step back, you will have to think about all that, and you'll have to digest this weekend, and keep on going.

CEDRIC PIOLINE: Yes. It was an important moment. If I had been able to do a bit more at that moment, a few better shots, or give away less points - I don't remember what I did at that time - maybe it could have turned around the situation. Now, the beginning of the fourth set was the same story. Every time he played well.

CEDRIC PIOLINE: Well, clay indoors is always faster than normal clay. It's part of my game to play serve-and-volley, to be aggressive. I continue doing that. Given the way he was playing today, I think it would have been difficult to have him down by staying on the baseline. He was playing in the middle of the court. I couldn't let him win his serves easily and rally a long time to win my own serves. It wasn't possible.

CEDRIC PIOLINE: Of course, there are many situations which I'm more comfortable in than that one. But that's the principle of a team. One of my friends lost one point, and this doesn't mean I have to give up. I try to come back to an equal score and to give an extra chance to my team. Coming into the court, saying, "We need this extra point," is not very pleasant, of course.

CEDRIC PIOLINE: Well, if you refer to the statistics, I don't know. Certainly it's true that doubles play an important role in Davis Cup. Even without statistics, we know it. We saw it several times. Certainly it might be the case.

CEDRIC PIOLINE: No, there's no regrets about that.

CEDRIC PIOLINE: The change is forever; things always change. I said it already and I'm saying it again: It's more pleasant for me to be appreciated. I'm trying to continue with that thought. I think people appreciate my game and what I do on the court. I try to give it back to them by making them feel emotions, so they can be happy also.

CEDRIC PIOLINE: Yes, sometimes tears.

CEDRIC PIOLINE: Yes, I hope so. What would be nice would be to have one, two or more players who improve a lot, who will be consistent during the whole year. I would need someone next to me so I can use his shoulder. I think among the new players, like Sebastien, Arnaud Di Pasquale, or others, Nicolas Escude, have a good future in Davis Cup. Maybe this year they were still a bit young, but I believe they are going to be very great Davis Cup players.

CEDRIC PIOLINE: For next year I don't know. As long as I have fun, as I please myself on the court, like it happened all year, and this weekend also, I will continue to play and I'll be competitive at a high level. Then if one day the players call me and believe that I am someone who can bring something to them as a captain, why not? But I think Guy did a wonderful job. He's an excellent captain. We have many other things to share with him as a captain and me as a player.