ATP Tour World Championship

November 23, 1998

Marcelo Rios

Q. What is it with the back?

MARCELO RIOS: I've been having these back problems every time I play hard court, come back, come indoors. I've been having problems for a long time.

MARCELO RIOS: I have not seen much. I've been in the hotel, the club, that's it. So cold, it's not very nice to go outside. Not been going out that much.

MARCELO RIOS: Sure, I think it's really tough. It's more tough. I have to travel all the way to Santiago. Go to Santiago, come back. I was in Europe, play clay, come back. It's pretty tough. But that's the way it goes. I live pretty far. I don't have another chance to do it, that's the only way.

MARCELO RIOS: Everybody likes to play at home. It's like playing Davis Cup. Everybody's supporting you. Everybody's with you. I always have a great time. I always play good. This year was an exception. Maybe I was a bit tired. I have a great time every time I play at home.

MARCELO RIOS: I had a week off, but I couldn't like rest. I was practicing, tried to stay fit. I had to come here, so I couldn't like relax as like a vacation. But I have a couple of days to rest.

MARCELO RIOS: What means rebel?

MARCELO RIOS: That makes rebel? If you make me the right question, I can answer you. I'm trying to understand what you say.

MARCELO RIOS: I think maybe it's a little bit faster. I think it's pretty fair. It's much slower than before. I think this court is good, same as Stuttgart. I think the slower the court, the better for people to watch. I think it's a good surface.

MARCELO RIOS: I think everybody's tough right now. If I have the other group, it would be tough also. I think everybody's playing good. Everybody is the top player there. Anybody you play is going to be tough.

MARCELO RIOS: I'll take like one more tournament. Maybe when you start playing, you start winning, you are going to be more excited about it. I take it like one more match, try to play good, try to do my best.

MARCELO RIOS: Some people say it's better to finish the year No. 1. Some people just say being No. 1 is pretty good. I think when you play good, the ranking will come by itself. I'm not worried about it, if I'm going to be 1, 2 or 3. I just got to play. The only chance I got to be No. 1 is play on the court. I have to focus more to play on the court than thinking about being No. 1.

MARCELO RIOS: No. I think I'm feeling pretty good. I'm playing good. When you doing things good, you don't put pressure on yourself. I think it's a thing I know how to do. I think it's not pressure. I think I'm really excited to play. I'm feeling pretty good.

MARCELO RIOS: We don't have a lot of support. I think the better you do, the more like people that know you. I always say I always feel real support in Chile. People support me a lot. That's why I like a lot to go over there, everybody's supporting you. They demonstrate it there with you. Every time you win, they show you that they happy.

MARCELO RIOS: It's pretty tough, but I don't go shopping anyway.

MARCELO RIOS: I'm not really a fan of music. I like everything. I like it a lot, but I like more like Latin music.

MARCELO RIOS: Heard about what?

MARCELO RIOS: This is the first time I'm here, so I don't know what is going on.

MARCELO RIOS: What do you mean? It's a tough crowd? I'll have to play. After my match, I'll tell you.

MARCELO RIOS: I'll have to think about it. I think I will go back home and stay there for a couple weeks. Have three weeks off vacation. But I don't have -- I haven't say like if I win what I going to do. I think it's going to come by itself.

MARCELO RIOS: I think everybody is different. Some people say I'm a nice guy; some people don't. The same as me: I think some people are nice, some I don't. That's the way people think about everybody. If I start getting worried about what people say, I think I would go crazy.

MARCELO RIOS: I'm not really into it. I'm playing tennis. I don't have that much time to know what's going on. I know some things is going on in my country.

MARCELO RIOS: I think I'm in another, like another area. I'm not into politics. I'm playing sports. I hope to learn a lot about what's going on there.

MARCELO RIOS: I think tennis is pretty big right now, some young kids have been doing good. I've been doing good. I think the first sport is still soccer.

MARCELO RIOS: I don't remember. I always wear a suit, but I don't remember when was the last time.

MARCELO RIOS: Every match you play, you know something, about your game, about your life. Every match, every practice you make, you learn a little bit. I think you never stop learning about the game.

MARCELO RIOS: I don't know yet. I haven't made yet for next year. Maybe I play less tournaments next year.

MARCELO RIOS: I love press conferences. (laughter)

MARCELO RIOS: Because they make nice questions. They make really like nice questions.

MARCELO RIOS: It's pretty the same.

MARCELO RIOS: When I begun the year, I wanted to like qualify for Masters. I did it. That was my goal. I'm in Top 5; I did it also. It's been a good year.

MARCELO RIOS: No, I think I don't say the word "surprised." I knew I was playing pretty good. I think if you do things good, prepare pretty good, things will come by itself. I don't think "surprised" is the right word.

MARCELO RIOS: I think it came pretty soon, like at the beginning of the year. A couple tournaments, I was No. 1. Like I say, I was playing pretty good.

MARCELO RIOS: I don't know yet. I don't know which tennis I'm going to play yet. But for sure I think I'm going to play less tournaments.

MARCELO RIOS: Obviously I'm looking forward to trying to win a Slam. This year I was pretty close. Maybe one of my goals next year will be to win a Slam.

MARCELO RIOS: I said I think some rules are not fair. I didn't say like what they put. I read that they said that I said they treat us like military. I never said like that. I think there are some rules that are not fair.

MARCELO RIOS: Some rules. I don't want to talk about that now. There's some rules that for me I don't like it. There's a lot of rules that I think is not fair for everybody. That's the only thing I said. I'm not going to tell the rules that I think are not fair. I think there are a lot of rules a lot of players don't like it. You have to discuss it. I don't think it's the right time to say the rules I don't like.

MARCELO RIOS: There's some players that are in the council of ATP; they discuss about those things. But I don't get into it that much. I'm not talking about what's going on, the rankings. I think I've never been really, really in that type of things, like talking about the ATP. I think I'm going my way. When they ask me what I think, I just say my feelings.

MARCELO RIOS: Like I say, I think everybody's different. Some people think I don't like the press. Some people think that I don't like to answer. Like I said, I don't think I have a bad image. I think some people put me a bad image. That's been going around the world. Everybody's saying I'm the bad guy of the Tour. I don't know what they mean by being bad. I think I'm the same as everybody. I go on the court, play the same as everybody, go to the press like a normal guy. I don't know what they mean. Nobody have never answered what they mean by saying "the bad guy."

MARCELO RIOS: I think since I've been doing good, some juniors been doing good, it's much bigger right now. They're doing more clinics. They have my matches on TV. Tennis is getting pretty big right now.

MARCELO RIOS: Just arrived, been practicing a lot. It's pretty cold to go outside.

MARCELO RIOS: If I don't play, maybe I'm going. I think I don't make plans like the next day. I have to see when I play, what's going on.

MARCELO RIOS: I take a shower, I eat, and I go to sleep.