TMS MONTE CARLO

April 16, 2002

Tim Henman

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

TIM HENMAN: Yeah. Really, really pleased. It wasn't the start that I was expecting to make, clay court season obviously with the conditions. But the result was one that I hoped for. And I felt like throughout, my shot selection and everything was pretty good for the first match. I think at times the execution wasn't quite as it might have been. Missed, you know, a couple of important shots, a couple of volleys at 30-all, you know, two forehands at 5-all in the tiebreak. Those are shots that are the right shots to hit, but I don't think I should have missed them. Having said that, I felt, even down 4-1, double break, in those conditions, it's such a fine margin. And from that moment on, I really cut out all unforced errors and still was aggressive when I had the opportunity but still very, very patient because it wasn't going to be a question of hitting winners to win; it was going to be a question of not making unforced errors.

TIM HENMAN: Yeah, it is. I mean, it is a strange -- I've played indoors on clay before on several occasions. But that, you know, that type of canopy and the lighting is different. But at the end of the day, it is the same conditions for both of you. You have to deal with it. And I wouldn't say I got off to the best of starts. I found it pretty awkward to begin with. But, again, I certainly felt like I was going to have plenty of time to find my way, find my feet if you like. And, you know, I feel physically and mentally very, very strong. And I just kept fighting hard.

TIM HENMAN: Yeah. No, no, it was obviously frustrating because we'd been waiting around enough with the length of the two matches previously. But it's funny. Even I was thinking when I was down a set, I was still surprisingly enjoying the match a lot because that's definitely the way I approach this time of year. It's a real challenge, but I really enjoy it. I enjoy, you know, the type of points that we have to play and trying to adapt my game.

TIM HENMAN: Yeah. He's very, very quick. And perhaps that would account for some of the shots that I ended up missing. Because you feel like you get an opportunity and, you know, you still want to make sure that you really go for the shot to make sure he can't get it back. And that sometimes can lead to unforced errors. But, you know, it is a proven tactic, if you like, that if you keep getting the ball back one more time, sometimes you do get those gifts. And I definitely donated a few early on. But I still was very positive about the way that I was playing, so I wasn't beginning -- about to begin to get frustrated. I had to keep plugging away. And for me, I won four in the second set. There was very little that I would change.

TIM HENMAN: It gets humid, yeah, but it gets very, very cold. You can see your breath a lot of the time. A lot of moisture in the court, in the air, in the back fence, in the covers on the side of the courts. So the ball was very, very heavy. And it's not my ideal conditions to play in. But I feel like I can adapt my game pretty well because my movement has improved. And so I think they - those types of players - find it difficult to put the ball away, because I'm moving well. And then I can sometimes put them in difficult positions bringing them into the net. And I think -- well, I know I volley well enough to win the point myself.

TIM HENMAN: No, I feel -- I do, I think I feel a lot better having won it. I do, I feel very good. It will be interesting to see how I pull up tomorrow. Because, you know, the first match on clay can be a bit of a shock to the system. I don't know quite how long we played, but it felt --

TIM HENMAN: Yeah, it's a pretty good length match for three sets. But, no, I feel fine now.

TIM HENMAN: Yeah.

TIM HENMAN: Very much so. I do. I think, you know, perhaps it was -- even for myself last year, it was probably a little bit unexpected. But I do, I feel like my game is certainly -- I'm capable of adapting it to this surface. And, again, I'm not suddenly then going to get my expectations too high, because I think that's when I - certainly on this surface, when I'm relaxed and, you know, I'm playing each point when it comes, that's when I'm going to play my best. It seems to work out pretty well.

TIM HENMAN: Yeah.

TIM HENMAN: Well, again, as I said, there's no excuse for missing a shot like that. Having said that, it was the execution that was wrong, not the selection. And, again, I wasn't going to get frustrated. It was a pretty disappointing shot to miss. But I felt like my game was kind of -- very close to being very good. There were still times when, especially on clay in those types of conditions, you can't have the dips that perhaps I had. But, as I said, from middle of the second onwards it was -- I felt it was pretty good.

TIM HENMAN: Kind of. I mean, it's different. But you've got to -- I think I am -- I'm pretty good at just playing with what I've got. Some days, you know, you're not hitting the ball as well as you'd like. I think mentally I'm able to deal with that. I knew -- it was pretty evident you're not going to serve the guy off the court or hit the guy off the court. But I enjoy that challenge of trying to slice and dice (smiling).

TIM HENMAN: Yeah, yep. It's good. It certainly got a good workout.

TIM HENMAN: I think early on, yeah. It was -- it's an interesting path to get to the court. (Inaudible) it down the rain and walking out to the back and beyond. It was good to get under the cover and get going really.

TIM HENMAN: Yeah. I felt like I'd done enough waiting around, so I wanted to get going in some way, shape or form. Having said that, there's plenty of debate about covers, certainly in our country. If we're going to get a cover, I wouldn't recommend that one (laughter).

TIM HENMAN: Yeah, again, it's good to get it out of the way. So that's the silver lining.

TIM HENMAN: Yeah. Pretty scary, isn't it? Yeah. I was talking to Haarhuis earlier, I said that he was old enough to be his dad. It is, it's phenomenal. To be that -- I think his game, you know, well, there aren't many guys that hit the ball that well. But I think mentally, it's incredible that he understands the game so well. And he looks like he's, you know, having fun, got a good attitude out there. I should think we'd pay a lot of money for someone like that in our country.