COMPAQ GRAND SLAM CUP

December 6, 1996

Yevgeny Kafelnikov

YEVGENY KAFELNIKOV: You have to ask the same question Jim, too. He was the one who was stayed on the opposite side of the court. I think the -- my problem was my serve. If I were able to capitalize half of the points I lost on serve, it would have been a much, much easier game. Hopefully, you know, tomorrow my serve will improve.

YEVGENY KAFELNIKOV: To be honest, I played quite relaxed, even when I was down 5-3 in the third, you know, I felt all right. That's why I was able to play a couple of big shots, to break him back, stay in the match. Then I was waiting for the right moment. The right moment came. I broke him and was able to hold my serve and win the match.

YEVGENY KAFELNIKOV: Yeah. Basically my game depending on the groundstrokes only. That's my main weapon. If I would have improved my serve and my volley, God, I would have been a better problem.

YEVGENY KAFELNIKOV: No.

YEVGENY KAFELNIKOV: We're quite good friends with Jim. We never have any problems on the court and off the court. We respect each other. We just enemies on the court, but in a positive way, not like we're trying to cheat on each other or something, no. We're just trying to prove who's better. Today I was a little bit better than him.

YEVGENY KAFELNIKOV: It's good. It's quite entertaining for the public. Third set could last more than an hour, which is very, very good for the spectators. Today, we had 8-6 in the third set, more than two hours on the court, which was good. I think it's a positive decision made by the tournament organization.

YEVGENY KAFELNIKOV: Yes, yes (laughter).

YEVGENY KAFELNIKOV: I wish I could serve better, but nobody can be perfect.

YEVGENY KAFELNIKOV: When the time comes to the very crucial moments in the match, I cannot trust my serve. That's my biggest problem.

YEVGENY KAFELNIKOV: Yes. I start in Estoril, that is my first tournament.

YEVGENY KAFELNIKOV: Once.

YEVGENY KAFELNIKOV: No question. By winning the French Open title, it helps my confidence very, very much. Before that, you know, I wasn't sure about my claycourt game because when I was going on the claycourt against Spanish players, it was quite difficult battle for me. But now I feel deep inside that I'm better than them, so that's why my record this year on the clay against Spanish players was perfect. I played 20 times and I lost only twice. Before that, for example, 1995, I wasn't even thinking close to that. Now it's different story.

YEVGENY KAFELNIKOV: Not lately, no. I haven't spoke with him, I don't know, one and a half months.

YEVGENY KAFELNIKOV: With him?

YEVGENY KAFELNIKOV: We talk, yeah. He congratulate me. We still good friends, but unfortunately we cannot be encouraged by one person. That's I think the sad moment. When we're on the circuit, we talk, ask what kind of form everybody has.

YEVGENY KAFELNIKOV: I think he's Monte-Carlo. He's practicing for the new season.

YEVGENY KAFELNIKOV: It's not because of confidence. I think it's personality. I consider myself as a hard-working player. For example, I'm not like Leconte, who are really the actors on the court. Maybe if I were men like them, maybe I wouldn't be so successful. This way I want to keep it myself as it is right now. I don't want to change anything, winning strategy or something like that. I just want to be cool and be focused on the main thing. For me the main thing right now is tennis.