WIMBLEDON

July 2, 2001

Goran Ivanisevic

MODERATOR: Ladies and Gentlemen, first question, please, for Goran.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: Just these two Goran. Like I say, they are together here, playing together, living together, fighting together. And this is just perfect, you know. When these two, they are together, then you can expect anything, a lot of good things, which I'm proving right now that I'm playing maybe the best tennis ever I play in Wimbledon.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: I don't know where I'm walking, but I'm walking. Maybe is not on the ground. Maybe I'm flying at the moment. Hopefully I can continue like that.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: I don't know. But I going to try. You know, I give my best. I thought I cannot play better than against Roddick, and then today I come and play, again, a great match, very focused, very concentrated, serve well, volley well, return well. So I think I can play maybe even better again next match.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: Yeah, that helped me, you know. I knew that he was not returning my serves well, and he was not picking my serve. I was mixing a lot, you know. Usually I was serving a lot to his backhand previous matches, but today I decide to serve on his forehand, which he maybe was surprised. But when I hit that return at 1-0 in the tiebreaker, just picked the side, hit that, then I knew that's going to be my match, doesn't matter four, five sets, it's going to be my match.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: In the beginning I didn't understand the way he started to play. His tactic was strange for me. You know, he stayed back a lot. He was hitting the first serve, kick first serve, he stayed back a lot of times, which was okay for me. And then didn't work for him that. Then he was starting maybe to panicking too much. He was rushing his first serve. His percentage was 46, 48%. He didn't know what to do after. You know, he was rushing, was getting more nervous and nervous. I just said to myself to put more returns I can into play, and then he's going to make even more nervous, which I did on most important points. I put return in. I was a little bit lucky break in the third, two miss-hits. But, you know, that's tennis. You have to take anything, especially against Greg who is serving so big, you know. Even when you pick the right time, the right side, you know, the serve is going so, so quick.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: Probably, you know, that's why I won eight matches and he didn't win one. That's why I think I'm better player than him overall, you know. I return better than him and I serve better than him. I think I'm better player. That's why I prove it so many years. That's why I have good results here. That's why I hoping today. But against him, you know, he's the one, he's the player that you never know. You know, he can also win Wimbledon with his game. But today, you know, maybe will be somebody else he wins that match. But he doesn't like to see me other side of the net, you know. He sees me, you know, he gets nervous, then he starts to do some stupid things, and I take it, you know.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: Yeah, I said straight in the beginning I didn't understand what is he doing with these kick serves and staying back. But was perfect. I say, "Man, when he started that, is going to be another great day for me."

GORAN IVANISEVIC: No, no, no. He was there. He was always ready to step in, but today everything was working fine.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: Because I only have three shirts, you know. I can't afford to throw my shirts, you know. Tacchini send me three shirts. I have to keep every shirt. I can't change too often. I have to wait for two sets to finish, I can change. With three shirts, you can't do a lot of things.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: Is going to be tough, interesting match. He is a great player. He's the one that I like on the tour, you know. Unpredictable. He can play great tennis, can play bad tennis, something like me. Hopefully he's going to be this bad Safin on Wednesday, you know, who's playing. But he improved a lot on grass. I saw him in Queen's start to serve and volley. He can play back. But I looking forward. Is a great match. A great opportunity for me to go even further.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: Yeah, he's a good friend. We have a same manager, you know. But hopefully I'm older. He has enough time to do well in Wimbledon. You know, he should give it to me this time.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: I don't know. I don't know who. When is a question of surviving, then you can't have three Gorans there - you have to have one if you want to survive. But probably mixture between bad one, good one and this 911 emergency one.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: He's a special one. It's tough to describe. That one is the brain one. He is the one there, emergency one, like all the emergency. You know, when it's tough, he comes in, steps in. Sometimes he cannot help, you know, because crazy Goran is too crazy to help him or good one is too good to do something. He has a tough job. Here, he stepped once, did a good job. Otherwise he was sitting here and watching and enjoying the two Gorans working together.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: Then is 911. 911 has to come in, calm down, put everything in order. So far is okay.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: Oh, yeah, probably maybe a Wimbledon. But that's life, you know. That's life. That's okay. He was out of job for long time, you know. Now he got a job. He has a steady job. He's going to be there.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: I am not. My shoulder is just working fine. Is still painful, still hurts, still have to do operation. But, like I say, I'm not going to lose here because of my shoulder. I'm not going to complain about my shoulder. Somebody wants to beat me, has to beat me. If my shoulder falls off, is bad luck, you know. But I am praying every night not to fall off and to hit some aces. So far is working fine.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: No, no, no, no. After, after we beat Italy I operate.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: I have a coach.

GORAN IVANISEVIC: Yeah. I have a younger coach. He's a friend, coach, sparring partner, everything.