WIMBLEDON

July 2, 2002

Greg Rusedski

MODERATOR: Greg for you.

GREG RUSEDSKI: No, I don't think I was too stressed at the end of the match. It just came down to one missed volley on breakpoint, and then one forehand up the line I missed by about three inches. So, you know, tennis comes down to one or two points. I had a lot of chances throughout the match, and he had chances. And took his chances and I didn't take mine.

GREG RUSEDSKI: Well, it's tough to come out and play one set. You know, I thought I started well and did the right things. You know, it came down to maybe two balls at the end for the match. You know, one volley, as I said, and one forehand up the line. When he needed it, he came through. Last night maybe it would have been better if we stopped at 3-All or something like that. But, you know, this is the way tennis goes. He took advantage and he played well.

GREG RUSEDSKI: No, I think it's the expectation you can thrive on. I think the crowd's been great. That's why I applauded them at the end because they've been wonderful throughout The Championship, have showed wonderful and tremendous support. Even when I lost, I at least wanted to acknowledge their support for the two weeks of The Championships.

GREG RUSEDSKI: It's obviously disappointing. I mean, you know, it was a great opportunity. I thought I played the better tennis in the five sets, but I just didn't win the important points. And that's what tennis comes down to, it comes down to two or three points here or there and taking them. You can have the momentum, but if you don't take it when it counts, then you end up the wrong way. Unfortunately, he took his opportunities and I didn't take mine.

GREG RUSEDSKI: I haven't thought about it yet. But I'll be back next year, and I'm going to get ready for the US Open now. So that's the next goal.

GREG RUSEDSKI: Well, I mean, she knows how much it means to me. And obviously, you know, she's just disappointed for me because she supports me all the time.

GREG RUSEDSKI: I think I have a chance, and I think I've got quite a few more years. I was really happy with my team, preparations everybody did together. I think I've got the people around me now that can help me to get there. So, you know, I'm just going to have to come back next year a little bit stronger and just take my chances.

GREG RUSEDSKI: I knew he's a good player. He's very crafty because he's got a long reach, he's quick, he's flowy. He makes shots out of nothing sometimes. He's not a consistent player, but he's a flashy player, the way he plays. Like, you know, he just was very loose the whole time when he plays. You know, he's a good player. There's no question about it.

GREG RUSEDSKI: Well, he's one of eight guys who's left now. But realistically, I think it's going to be tough still with Hewitt in the draw and the other top players.

GREG RUSEDSKI: Possibly this year. It could happen.

GREG RUSEDSKI: Everybody knows the grass is much slower. There's no question about it. You can see it from the rallies and how guys are getting hits on returns and all sorts of things. You know, I mean, I talked to Bjorkman in Nottingham. And he said the speed of the grass from Nottingham to Wimbledon was quite a huge difference. But, you know, if you serve well and you volley well, it doesn't make a difference.

GREG RUSEDSKI: It's a combination of both, I'd say. It's things you can work on, and it's things you need to take advantage of. You know, instead of going for the forehand down the line on breakpoint, maybe just bring it back cross-court. So it's just one or two things here or there. Tennis, there's not a huge difference, as you can see from the game.

GREG RUSEDSKI: Well, I just wish him well. You know, it's a great opportunity. You know, just as he goes out there and does his best, that's all he can do.

GREG RUSEDSKI: Well, he's one of eight guys who's left. If you're still left in the tournament, you've got a great chance.

GREG RUSEDSKI: I was hoping to get out of there in four, to be honest with you. So didn't work out that way, unfortunately.

GREG RUSEDSKI: I just kept moving my racquet through it. I don't know what happened there. You'll have to look at the replay. I mean, I don't know if it was a double hit or not. I just kept my motion at one motion through, and that's all there was to it.

GREG RUSEDSKI: Yeah, I mean, he hits the ball through the legs, he does things. So, you know, you have to come out somehow and counter it.

GREG RUSEDSKI: Well, I just think I just missed the volley, the bottom line. It's a little bit windy out there. The way I got broken, I played a good first point, got to 15-All, then he kind of hit a high lob sort of return that was really tough to deal with, hit a good lob, came to 30-All. He hit a good passing shot again, so I'd done nothing wrong at 30-40. Then he made me play a ball. Gusted a little bit. Just didn't make the shot, nothing more, nothing less. Just got to make that shot next time.

GREG RUSEDSKI: I think I was pretty relaxed because I felt I could still get back into the match, and I nearly did. It would have been interesting had I had a second serve on one of those two breakpoints. You know, first one he comes up with an ace. Second one, you know, I -- if I would have got a second serve, maybe I would have chipped and charged. But you've just got to keep it in play because the pressure's on him really to finish it off. You know, he did the job. But I felt I was still back in the match and had a chance to get back. That's the way she goes. He's not a character who gets tense. As you can see from his body language out there, he's pretty loose.

GREG RUSEDSKI: The problem, he's a difficult player to play because the problem being is if you give him a target, he loves a target. So you've almost got to play a game which is rather ugly with him because if you come in, keep on chipping, chipping, chipping, he's going to keep passing, passing, passing. He likes to be wide on the wings. Down the middle, he's not as good, but on the wings he's very dangerous. You know, if I chipped and charged I think more off the first ball, I might have got myself in more trouble. So I think the strategy was right; it was just one or two points.

GREG RUSEDSKI: Well, I think it was a great opportunity. But if I look at my section, it was a pretty rough section of all the sections in the tournament. I did the best I could. You know, there's still going to be next year. There's not many grass court players out there. Maybe next year they'll keep the grass a little bit quicker. Who knows. So you've just got to look at it: I'm still young, I'm only 28, so I've still got a few more years left in me to do well.

GREG RUSEDSKI: I think they've evened out the grass now, I think, in that respect, as you can see. So you're going to have probably more upsets and different sorts of styles. You've never seen so many baseliners so deep in the tournament. You know, usually you'll see Agassi, who's the only baseliner who really goes deep on grass, and Borg in the past history, but that was wooden racquets, so it was a little bit slower back then.

GREG RUSEDSKI: I don't know. You'd have to -- it's just the way the grass is grown or something, plus the dry weather. It's a combination of a few things. I mean, it's the ball, the court. But that's not an excuse. At the end of the day, you've just got to win, no matter what. If you're serving 130, hit the corners, you don't care what you're playing on.

GREG RUSEDSKI: I think it's just the way they cut the grass, the way they grow it, just the dryness of it, different things. Just the balls - the ball just fluffs more.

GREG RUSEDSKI: I have no idea. If you would have said to me that Sampras, Agassi would all be out in the second round, and Safin... I'm not a betting man. Every time I try to make a prediction, I've been wrong. I'll leave it on that one.

GREG RUSEDSKI: It's so open. It's so open that I don't see one clear favorite. I can see like, I mean, there's probably four or five guys left who can still win it.

GREG RUSEDSKI: Yeah, I think he's got a good chance. There's Philippoussis, Krajicek, Tim, Hewitt. Malisse, you never know, because he could just keep swinging and it could go. You know, there's guys that can do. There's no predictability. I mean, I don't think he's one of the five, but you never know. Who knows. I can't guess. If I could, then that would be great. Then I'd know whether I should enter or not.

GREG RUSEDSKI: I think there's only a few handful of guys, 10 guys, who can really win The Championships. This is an opportunity for someone new to come out and win it. I don't know if Krajicek is going to win or what. But there's no more defending champions apart from Krajicek here. Looks like this year there will be a new Wimbledon winner if he doesn't go through. It should be exciting.