WIMBLEDON

June 30, 2004

Tim Henman

THE MODERATOR: Good afternoon, everyone. Tim for you.

TIM HENMAN: You know, I think the first set was very important for both of us because I think that was -- we were both playing at a very, very high level, and there weren't too many chances flying around. You know, ended up being an important tiebreak, I think. After he was able to win that set, I think, you know, he gained confidence, and his level, you know, if anything probably got a little bit better. And I think, you know, second and third sets, my level went down. You know, there's no question that the better player won on the day.

TIM HENMAN: No turning point exactly. I think just, you know, the first set ended up being critical. As I said, you know, his confidence and his level got better after that, and mine unfortunately didn't.

TIM HENMAN: Very, very much so. Very much so.

TIM HENMAN: It happens. You know, it's not something I wanted it to happen, don't get me wrong. I think with, you know, the confidence of his serving and, you know, how he was able to hold serve a lot of the time, that's always going to be the basis for your confidence. You know, I felt like he was not only putting me under pressure with his serve, but, you know, started to return much more consistently. And that, again, adds an even greater amount of pressure onto my game. You know, you start to force a little bit, you start going for a little bit extra on certain shots, and that can bring out some errors. You know, that was the case.

TIM HENMAN: Because I didn't think that was the right tactic.

TIM HENMAN: No. Again, you know, I, you know, felt like it could have been out, as well. I think I know the point that you're talking about. But, you know, that's the nature of it. You know, absolutely some of the tight calls against Philippoussis went my way. You know, perhaps that one didn't go my way, but I don't think you can -- I don't really think that a match is going to be dictated by, you know, one call that goes your way or against you. But I think it's much more to do with, you know, the quality of his play. I'm disappointed with the level of my play second and third sets. But I still would say that he has, you know, a large part to play in that.

TIM HENMAN: He won it. That's what I believe.

TIM HENMAN: Anyone that's playing in a Wimbledon quarterfinal is a good player, don't get me wrong. But I felt that -- I was right to a certain extent -- the nature of the match was going to be similar to the nature of a Philippoussis. Having played them both, if I were to make the comparison between Ancic and Philippoussis, well, he's serving bigger than Philippoussis, his second serve was more accurate, was faster, coming down from a greater height. I felt like he returned a lot better. You know, that was the difference. I felt that, you know, I played a good match and was able to overcome Philippoussis' challenge. But unfortunately for me, Ancic was at a higher level than that. I wasn't able to deal with that.

TIM HENMAN: Nothing. If anything, it helped me - confidence. When you come through a match like that, you've got to feel good about yourself, good about your game. And I think I portrayed, you know, I was happy to come through that. And absolutely, I came into this match confident.

TIM HENMAN: I think it's worse, actually. That's the honest answer.

TIM HENMAN: Yeah, well, again, I think you can try and be -- you can try and look at it sort of in perspective and you could say, "Well, how far has my game come in the last 12 months?" I couldn't have been more sort of disappointed with my game 12 months ago. And now I look at the results that I've had, and I look at the last seven months, and I've won a Masters Series, I've been in the semis of the French. But, you know, right now, it's no consolation. I mean, my hopes were -- my hopes and desires and aims were to win this tournament. And having lost it, it's a tough one to swallow.

TIM HENMAN: I'd like my performance to be better. The support I've had is absolutely phenomenal. You know, could we have a perfect balance every time? Well, it's probably asking a bit much on a grass court. The crowd, I don't think I could ask for more. So, no, I wouldn't say that, you know, the atmosphere on the Centre Court can be much better. Sure, when I'm winning, you know, I'm coming through tight games and tight sets, with Philippoussis, the atmosphere is incredible. When I'm down two sets, you known, it's a tough environment for everybody.

TIM HENMAN: I thought I just answered that question, didn't I, Nigel?

TIM HENMAN: Again (smiling). Yeah, I think it gets worse actually.

TIM HENMAN: Yeah.

TIM HENMAN: No. I don't think so at all. I think absolutely those types of performances are going to give one selfconfidence. And, you know, if I can play the level as I did against Philippoussis, you know, why couldn't I have played -- if I'm capable of it two days ago, why couldn't I play it that way today? I could have done, but unfortunately, you know, I didn't. We've gone through those reasons why I think I wasn't able to do that. But, no, again, you know, looking perhaps in a couple of weeks when I move on from this, or look at the progress that I've made in the six or seven months of this year, then there will be some good things. And there's no question that my game has developed. But, you know, my focus of attention has very much been on this tournament. And that's why I say there's no consolation.

TIM HENMAN: Next tournament is Toronto, Masters Series Toronto, then Cincy, then back for Athens.

TIM HENMAN: It's a question I ask myself a lot. It's obviously a big talking point, given the nature of, you know, this environment and the tournament being in the UK and me really being the only player right now. So it is a question that's discussed frequently. And, you know, I've never hidden behind the fact that this is the tournament I'd love to, you know, win the most. And the reality is that, you know, I don't have an endless number of years for chances, if you like. And, again, you know, I felt this was a good opportunity. So, you know, it's not going to -- I'm sure it won't detract from what I do with regard to my game because, you know, there's a number of years ahead of me, I think as long as I stay, you know, fit and healthy. I'm sure that my desire and dedication and motivation will always be there. But, no, it's the reality. I've not got endless chances.

TIM HENMAN: Yeah, I think, you know, statistics, you can read into them a lot -- in a lot of different ways. You know, someone like Agassi, for example, you know, he drops his serve so often, but he doesn't, you know, hit a great deal of aces. It's how you, you know, take care of each and every point. You know, there's this -- there's very much sort of a misconception, isn't there, on a grass court that you've got to play in a certain way. You know, that's why I think it's fairly ironic now that suddenly after today's match, people say, "Perhaps you should have stayed back a bit more." You know, first four matches I played, all I've heard is, "Oh, stays back too much." That just goes to show that you're not going to please everyone. But it's important that I play the way that I want to play and the way I believe in. And, you know, some of the stats that you mention, you know, it boils down to I think whether you're going to win the big points or not. And it doesn't matter whether you've had, you know, 8 or 10 or 15 breakpoints. If you get one of them and it's in the fifth, you're going to be pretty happy about it.

TIM HENMAN: You've either got self-belief or you haven't, you know. Why I believe in myself, I don't know. But, you know, I believe I'm pretty good at this game. I'm going to keep working hard, keep trying to do the right things. I think that's in terms of, you know, trying to fulfill one's potential. It's very difficult to quantify what that is. But I think if you give it your best, then you'll probably find out what it is.

TIM HENMAN: No, again, I think it's even more credit goes to him, unfortunately, because that's perhaps something that, you know, I certainly could hope that, you know, maybe he got a little tight or started to rush a little bit. But, as you say, if anything, I felt the first set was very -- not only was it very close, but I think it was a very high quality. And, you know, as you say, perhaps I was hoping that his level might drop, whereas I think my level dropped. But his, if anything, got better and better.

TIM HENMAN: Yeah, you know, he's a big guy, he moves -- his balance is pretty good for a guy of his size. You know, he definitely picked some volleys up, picked some, you know, good returns up, good passing shots. I don't think I was surprised by that. But disappointed I think sometimes when you see good returns, you know, come back from good volleys.

TIM HENMAN: Yeah, I think that definitely should be the case. And, again, you know, I learnt unfortunately a lot of negative things from what I saw 12 months ago. And definitely, you know, there are things that I felt like, you know, I could have done better on today's match. But, you know, that's where in a couple of weeks, you know, I still think there are -- there are a lot of good things that have happened in the last six or seven months, I can't deny that, about how quickly my game has turned around. You know, whatever the direction is, I think, you know, it's a good one right now. And, you know, with Annacone's input, I think it's had a big impact, and I've got to try and build on that. You know, it's very much twofold. At the moment, it's not really -- doesn't sound too appealing, but, you know, I'm sure when I've had some time to reflect on it and move on, then I'll do exactly that.

TIM HENMAN: I don't know.

TIM HENMAN: Don't know.

TIM HENMAN: Don't know.

TIM HENMAN: You know, I'd be interested to see, I'm not saying that I'll be watching, but I'll be interested to see how he gets on in the semis against either, you know, Roddick or a Schalken because, you know, I think he's playing some -- he's playing very, very well. And, you know, I'll be intrigued to see how perhaps the other players, you know, cope with it, and if someone copes with it and beats him, it will be an element of interest to see what worked. Because I think if he keeps that level of his serving, both first and second serves, it's just tough to play against. That's something I know I did very well against Philippoussis. I do it well. I think that's why I've had success against someone like Roddick. But it was, yeah, very tough to return today.

TIM HENMAN: I don't know. Family and friends, just get away from it for a certain extent. No reason, no incentive to pick up a racquet for a while. You know, definitely need to just take a step back and switch off and let time heal, to a certain extent.

TIM HENMAN: Yep, absolutely.