WIMBLEDON

June 29, 2000

Alexander Popp

MODERATOR: Please.

ALEXANDER POPP: I am excited, very excited. But I'm very tired, too, to be honest. Maybe that's why I didn't show too much. I was very tired. It was a long match. That's probably it, yeah.

ALEXANDER POPP: She's born in Wolverhampton. Most of my relatives live in London now.

ALEXANDER POPP: No, I'm born in Germany. I went to school in Germany, too.

ALEXANDER POPP: Yeah.

ALEXANDER POPP: Not really, no, to be honest. I haven't played that well in juniors or the last couple of years. I've just been coming up. Last year probably was my best year up to now. I haven't thought of that, to be honest. I'll try and improve my game. Whatever happens happens.

ALEXANDER POPP: Well, I haven't represented anybody up to now. Everything came very quickly for me. I've been just playing for myself. Now I'm here. Wait and see. That's all I can say about that.

ALEXANDER POPP: My coach is Helmut Luethy from Germany, L-u-e-t-h-y.

ALEXANDER POPP: For me, definitely, yeah, the most exciting game I've ever played. I'm here for the first time, Wimbledon. To play Michael Chang, I remember him winning Paris, 1989. I was 13. Nothing special in Juniors, just started playing a couple tournaments. It was great for me to play him, then win 8-6 in the fifth. For me, I think it's even better than winning in straight sets. It's always nice to win a match like that.

ALEXANDER POPP: Well, I wasn't too sure I was going to win after the third set. I had a couple of chances. I had set points at I think 5-4 in the third, didn't make it. After the third set, I wasn't too happy. I thought it's going to be very difficult to win it. After I broke him in the fourth, won the fourth set, of course I knew fifth set, it's an open match. It's the most important set. Nothing will happen after that. One of us is going to win. I just went on playing, didn't think about anything, to be honest.

ALEXANDER POPP: You mean my next match?

ALEXANDER POPP: Against Kuerten?

ALEXANDER POPP: It's going to be more difficult than today, that's definite. He's got a great serve. I guess he's going to play well here on grass, too. I'll just go out there and enjoy it. For me it's the greatest match I've probably ever played up to now. I'll try and enjoy it.

ALEXANDER POPP: Came here?

ALEXANDER POPP: I didn't expect anything because I was ill after the French Open, I couldn't practise for two and a half weeks. I just had a week of practise before Wimbledon. We didn't expect anything. I mean, we just came here, said, "You've got the chance to play Wimbledon." For me, when I was a kid, it was the greatest thing to come here ever. I didn't really believe it when I was young. I just came here and thought that it's great to play, do well, whatever happens happens. I won my first match after I lost the first set 6-Love. I was probably a little bit nervous, hadn't played any matches for a long time. Then I got in, played well after that. I was just coming here and playing match after match.

ALEXANDER POPP: Never. Never played any Grand Slams when I was a kid.

ALEXANDER POPP: Here for the first time. Never came as a spectator.

ALEXANDER POPP: I like it a lot. I think it's the nicest tournament in the world for me. I like England anyway. I've got relatives here. Of course I haven't seen the club before they built the new building here, so I'm not sure what it looked like before. I think it's perfect. It's great.

ALEXANDER POPP: That was my coach.