ATP Tour World Championship

November 23, 1998

Tim Henman

Q. What do you think about the draw?

TIM HENMAN: There are no easy ones. If anything, I think it's fair to admit I was happy to avoid Mr. Sampras on an indoor court like this, you know, he's always -- I mean, everybody has a lot to play before. With him really gunning for the No. 1 spot, I think that's going to make him extra determined, and probably even harder than he already is to beat. So, yeah, I think for me it's come out as well as I could have hoped for.

TIM HENMAN: I found out sort of 15 minutes before, maybe five minutes before you guys did. I don't think anyone quite knows how bad it is. We'll have to wait and see. I feel confident against whoever I play. Having said that, if a guy plays and he's not a hundred percent, that probably helps us.

TIM HENMAN: Yeah, that would be an interesting match. It would be an interesting one for both of us. We've both achieved quite a few firsts this year. If we were to play each other in the World Championships, that definitely would be another one. But, yeah, we'll have to wait and see. Probably in a couple of days, we'll be able to answer.

TIM HENMAN: I think they find out in 20 minutes or half an hour.

TIM HENMAN: Yeah. If I play badly here, I will have definitely left my mark on this tournament. You just need to go and have a look at the court. My shoe is rather marking on the court. You could go and have a look at it.

TIM HENMAN: Black, nice black.

TIM HENMAN: Blue on the outside, sort of red on the inside. I think it's a great surface.

TIM HENMAN: I had a brand-new pair of shoes on. I don't know. They're not meant to be marking. By the looks of things, they will. But I think it is a really good surface. It's something that has come more on the scene this year. I think everybody is much more in favor of it. It's fair. It bounces high. It's not particularly fast for an indoor court. You know, you've got the chance to play whichever way you'd like, from the baseline or from serving and volleying.

TIM HENMAN: No. Same as Stuttgart.

TIM HENMAN: GreenSet.

TIM HENMAN: No. I think David wasn't too informed about the surface.

TIM HENMAN: No. I think the one we're having in Davis Cup is the same as in the London tournament, isn't it?

TIM HENMAN: Nor do I.

TIM HENMAN: Yes, definitely. If you can't get motivated for this, then you're probably in the wrong job. I felt like there was -- definitely after Stockholm, there was a sense of relief. I had a few days playing golf. I didn't play until Thursday. I felt very ready to start practicing again and start preparing. I had a couple of good days here. If I had the choice, I'd like to play tomorrow really. I think two days practicing has been perfectly adequate, so I'm ready to go.

TIM HENMAN: Saturday night. I practiced twice on Sunday, plus today.

TIM HENMAN: Really lightly this morning.

TIM HENMAN: Yeah. It was minus six when we landed. That shouldn't affect us, hopefully.

TIM HENMAN: I hit with Kafelnikov quite a lot, knowing that I couldn't play him (laughter).

TIM HENMAN: It was pretty amusing, actually. We played a couple of sets. I think on a breakpoint, I hit a net cord (laughter).

TIM HENMAN: Russian, yeah (laughter).

TIM HENMAN: Yeah, I think that's fair to say. I think at this moment in time, that is the goal, to come in as the top two of the group.

TIM HENMAN: Yeah, a lot of strange things happen in the round-robin.

TIM HENMAN: In a way, it doesn't seem quite right that perhaps you could lose and still win the tournament. But, yeah, it's kind of a fairly unique situation. I think we don't often have that opportunity. If that happens to be the case, I think anyone will take it.

TIM HENMAN: Well, I think also you look into the nature of our form at the time that we played. I was struggling a little before Key Biscayne; I think that's fair to say. Coming into the tournament, you know, I was really scraping the barrel for wins. That's where I started to turn my year around, if you like. Still, I think from then until now, I think I'm playing a lot better than I was then. You know, on clay if I practiced on it for 12 months, I still might not beat him. So, no, definitely this is going to be my best opportunity, and I'm really looking forward to having that.

TIM HENMAN: Yeah, in London. Not matches. We just practice in London. He's retired. He still plays very well. He's in London quite a bit. I practiced with him before Stockholm.

TIM HENMAN: Not always, no. He still beats me.

TIM HENMAN: Well, I don't know. It was a goal at the beginning of the year. I think then it was fair to say that March, probably up until May, I think making Hannover was not really in the plans. But then the better and better I started to play, I knew that I could give myself a chance. I think around US Open time, I knew I still had an uphill battle, but Tashkent and Basel I think was the big turning point for me.

TIM HENMAN: Yeah, that was a very tense time. I'm not quite sure who was more tense, myself or my coach (laughter). It was. I think at times I thought that I was going to be safe. Stuttgart and Paris was a real turning point for me -- well, for others. The best thing about it was in Stockholm, it was still in my hands. I could go out there, and if I won my matches, I could take care of it myself. I think that was a big satisfaction to do that. Under the circumstances, having lost my last two weeks 7-6 in the third, had to play a tiebreak basically to make this tournament. That was very satisfying. Looking back on it, I was disappointed with the way I played against Martin and perhaps my intensity. Perhaps I realize now how much was at stake and how much of a relief it was. I think having achieved it, it had been such a goal, it was like --

TIM HENMAN: Yeah, exactly that.

TIM HENMAN: No.

TIM HENMAN: Yeah. I kind of didn't feel like I really deserved to be playing last year. I was quite a long way down. This year it's nice to be here on merit.

TIM HENMAN: I think it's to win as many matches as I can.

TIM HENMAN: Very British?

TIM HENMAN: Both my parents are English, then all four grandparents are English, then all great grandparents are English, so it's in my blood (laughter).

TIM HENMAN: We played 12 months ago in Paris. Definitely wasn't one of my better matches. He's had a great year, and perhaps played even better on the hard courts. Towards the end of the year, my form definitely has been very high, and perhaps he hasn't been quite so successful.

TIM HENMAN: I haven't committed one way or the other. I think it's much more likely. I think there's a good chance this year that we will be playing.

TIM HENMAN: Definitely not going to be any easy matches here. I think if I was being honest, the one to avoid was Sampras. Happy to be away from his group.

TIM HENMAN: Yeah, that's right. We sort of found out 15 minutes before the ceremony that he wasn't going to be there, that he hurt his back this morning. We just have to wait and see. Only he'll know how it is.

TIM HENMAN: We have to wait and see. I think they're doing the schedule as we speak. Then we'll find out who I play and when that is. I feel very confident going into the tournament. Hopefully I can have a good run.

TIM HENMAN: Yeah. I think it's a great surface. It's much fairer than some of the indoor surfaces. It's all about serve in the past. This you can do anything, you can stay on the baseline, you can serve and volley. Whichever you do, you're going to have to do it well.

TIM HENMAN: As an indoor arena goes, it doesn't get much better. 13,000 people will pretty much be in there as the matches start. I think the atmosphere will be set. Hopefully the players can give them something worth watching.

TIM HENMAN: Not really, no. I think everybody's got so much to play for in a tournament like this. They've got their own sort of personal battle. Everyone will be looking to do as well as they can.

TIM HENMAN: It will be interesting. We've had a lot of firsts this year, both Greg and myself. Definitely be a first to play each other in the World Championships.

TIM HENMAN: There's definitely a healthy rivalry amongst us. We both want to be ranked higher than the other one. I think that helps us have a lot of good results.

TIM HENMAN: Earlier this year we had some problems, but now I think that's been put behind us. We have a much better relationship. We practice together quite a lot. It works out for both of us.

TIM HENMAN: Not really. It doesn't interest me.

TIM HENMAN: I think it is a big problem in the States. I think when you have the Davis Cup, the regard to for Davis Cup in the UK, I think it's right up there with Wimbledon. In the States, it doesn't seem to have the media, doesn't seem to appeal to them. I think Pete on a couple of occasions, when he's played some of his best tennis away from home on clay, in Moscow, for instance, winning the title, I don't think that he felt it meant a great deal.

TIM HENMAN: No. I think if you talked to a lot of the other nations, Davis Cup, representing your country, is very special. I think to the American people in tennis perhaps it doesn't mean too much.

TIM HENMAN: A lot.

TIM HENMAN: It gives I think a lot of pressure for Sampras and Rios. Obviously, they're the two guys fighting for the No. 1 spot. But I think it brings a lot of interest, even more interest to the tournament.

TIM HENMAN: Yeah. I think my record is not too good against Sampras. I think on an indoor court, perhaps it's better for me to play Rios.

TIM HENMAN: And in Rome.

TIM HENMAN: I think an indoor court where it's a little quicker, I think that probably helps me a little bit. But, like everybody in this tournament, they're all very good players. There's not going to be any easy matches.

TIM HENMAN: I think, yeah, his attitude toward things are changing a little bit. He's probably more mature than some years ago. I think he's making more of an effort away from the court.

TIM HENMAN: I think it's right up there. This is the elite, if you like. If you would have said in May that I would have made it, I would have looked to you pretty strangely. I'm pleased to be here, but now I want to have a good week.

TIM HENMAN: It has. We played a lot of tennis. When you're involved in an event of this stature, you're not going to need any extra motivation.

TIM HENMAN: I don't think that has any influence on it. I think it's obviously easy to say that if you've earned more and more money. But, no, you're playing for the prestige of the tournament and hopefully for the win.

TIM HENMAN: I think the title of it speaks for itself, the World Championships. It's the best of the eight of the year. You don't need to say more than that.

TIM HENMAN: There's no easy ones. Everybody here has had a great year. You know, I'm really looking forward to it.

TIM HENMAN: Sweden is going to win.

TIM HENMAN: Sweden, 3-2. Sweden will win the doubles.

TIM HENMAN: Yes.

TIM HENMAN: It's great for the Italians to be playing at home on clay, with the support they have. I think the strength and depth is very important for the Swedes.

TIM HENMAN: I think, if anything, I was happy to avoid Sampras. I haven't had a good record against him. Having said that, there's not going to be any easy matches. I'm looking forward to it.

TIM HENMAN: We're totally spoiled I think is the best way to put it. It's an amazing arena. The facilities are, all the players have, is great. We're really well looked after. I think that's extra enjoyment.