US OPEN

August 31, 2001

Goran Ivanisevic

MODERATOR: Questions, please.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: No. Is good when plane come, you can scream, and nobody can hear.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: What do you mean?

GORAN IVANISEVIC: Actually, it's more quiet when you play Wimbledon. You rent apartment or house close there. You finish your practice, you walk for five minutes, you're there watching movies. Here you have to drive every day, if you lucky 45 minutes, if you not, one hour and a half. They put like six people in the bus. They don't even give you the car alone. Then they take two people in this hotel, two in this. You come to the hotel, it takes you two hours. But actually New York is nice. I like New York. This is the last Grand Slam. You have to deal with anything, everything. If you start to make problems, then this comes on the court. I don't try to make any problems. I do whatever I have to do. Drive two hours, three hours, whatever. When I win the matches, you don't complain too much.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: It's action city. It never sleeps. Like 300 kilometers an hour every day, everything is so quick. But is good for three weeks. After, is too much, you know. You just get into that rhythm and you find yourself hitting the wall. You have to take off and leave. But it's fun. You know, it's fun. It's fun to walk around, fun people, is really nice.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: I actually felt great today on the court, much better than first round. I really enjoy myself there, I have fun more. Even when I lost that serve, I didn't feel like I lose the match. I was really feeling well and I knew he's going to give me something, you know, sooner or later. Was good for me. I broke him straightaway back. Really felt nice. Was nice to play. With a little wind, but was nice.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: Was great. Sometimes I was 40-Love up, I play a couple of stupid points like 4-2. 40-Love, deuce, breakpoint. But then I serve three aces. I think my serve was much better than first day. Motion and rhythm was much better.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: It's high. I play good in Cincinnati, even better in Indianapolis. Really hitting the ball well. When I have to hit, I hit. When I have a push, I push. I can do whatever, come in. Is great. Like I say, if I pass the first week, it's great thing, then anything is possible. I have one more match, but this one is going to be tough. I never beat Costa. Is going to be tough for me.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: It does, it does. Now when I'm 15-40 or 30-40 down, I produce ace first serve or I hit a good shot. Before, I was too scared to make a double-fault. Now I'm more confident. When you're more confident, then you have more variety of shots. I can come in. I can stay back. Before I was maybe rushing too much. Now I can do more things on the court.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: That's true, more respect. They know I'm playing good. They know they can expect from me anything. It's nicer to play like that.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: It is some. When I'm in bad mood, it just gives me so much pleasure. When I walk, when I go somewhere, just give me so much pleasure that I won, that I remove that stone from my back. I don't walk anymore heavy. Now I'm lighter, more fun. Is just great feeling.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: Maybe, maybe. I didn't punish, but looked like I was punishing myself because I want it so bad. When you want something so bad, is opposite reaction, is not going. You can't get loose. When a Grand Slam come, was the same question, "Are you ready, Goran? When you going to win? Is this your year?" Me again, "Yes, I know. I don't know. Yes, maybe." Now I don't have to answer anymore those questions. I'm very happy about it.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: No, because I don't mean that. When I come on the Slam, I believe I can do well, especially Wimbledon, especially this year I felt I can do well. I don't know for what reason. My confidence didn't give me that. I just felt that's it. And that happen. When I look forward -- actually back one year here, I lost 1-Love-1 to Hrbaty. Was disgusting. Even you tank, but you try. You lose 1-Love-1. When I won Wimbledon, I just so happy. Everything on the court, I'm happy off the court. Everything seems easy.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: I need, you know, because on clay I have tough time. A lot of matches, I have tough time. Lucky I'm winning in three sets. When I play more sets, my neck gets stiff, all this gets stiff (pointing to shoulder). I can't pray every night. I can, but I can hope everything going to be fine. Hopefully when I clean this, everything is going to be easier for me.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: Yes.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: Can't happen again. This is once in your life. Maybe 20,000. That kind of thing, a city of 350,000 people, almost 200,000 people came out, it's unbelievable. They said everybody who was not dead came there.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: I don't know. That was just a great feeling. I think especially because all these three finals and everything out of nowhere, I win. Everything was just so nice like in the dreams, this fairytale story, it's just great.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: (In Croatian) it's called. We were singing a lot of songs. That day was the happiest day of my life. A lot of songs they were singing there. It's just fun. When you don't care, you can sing whatever you want. I just won Wimbledon. I could do there what I wanted. I even stripped. I don't think nobody stripped in front of 150,000 people. I'm the only guy there.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: Actually, I never strip in front of everybody. In front of my girlfriend, yeah. In front of so many people.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: Is not that bad, but it is bad. They were thinking about the same surgery. If I touch the tendon, like he did, then I'm out for six, seven months. That's tough to get back. You know, you have to really tough it out and try to practice. But mine, they just going to clean it a little bit, then I'm like 10 to 12 weeks out, which is easier. You can never say with your shoulder.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: No, no, I'm going to Germany. Germans are good, you know (winking).

GORAN IVANISEVIC: No idea. He's one of the best shoulder doctor in Germany, so he must be good. I don't know if he work on somebody good or not. He must be good.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: Nothing. I got this Teletubby thing. They send me, the producer from this show, send me all four.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: Yes, and the handcuffs.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: I don't know. I'm going down. No more handcuffs, nothing. Nothing interest. Just "Happy Birthday." That's it.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: That's okay. I won Wimbledon. I was not winning Wimbledon, so they try to cheer me up with the handcuffs. I don't know how can cheer you up somebody with handcuffs. Pretty depressing when you see handcuffs.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: They are all funny. It's a show for two years old kids. My sister has a daughter, she's two years old. She knows everything. I watch with her the other day when I was home. But, I don't know, I like this tall guy Tinky-Winky. They're funny to watch, but not more than ten minutes, then gets too much. They repeat one thing for 50 times.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: I don't know. I didn't ask him.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: What do you mean "came together"?

GORAN IVANISEVIC: It already came together long time ago. I mean, I don't understand what you mean.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: We have our country already ten years. Everything is okay. No more wars. There was one government before. Now we have a different government, which is not the best government. But I don't want to talk about it. It's not my job, you know, to take care of the country. I play tennis. I like my country. I enjoy. I going to live there. Hopefully in the future we going to be one of the best living country in the world, if is possible.