U.S. OPEN

September 1, 1996

Tim Henman

TIM HENMAN: Thank you, very much.

TIM HENMAN: Very pleased. First time on stadium court at US Open playing somebody I've never beaten, you know, an American. It gives me a great deal of satisfaction to be able to put the past behind me and come up with a win.

TIM HENMAN: Yes, very much so. I think on one of them I did play a very good point. I think that was when I was hitting a couple of volleys. Then the other one, he missed a return, so those were obviously crucial points. Once we got to the tiebreak, can't say I felt very confident, having never won a tiebreak. But maybe, you know, it was my turn today.

TIM HENMAN: Against Todd (laughter). It's late, Mike, I know.

TIM HENMAN: A little bit patchy. There were times when I thought I served okay and times when I did struggle on my serve. Having said that, you know, I think the other parts of my game, where I was hitting the ball off the ground, my volleys, were what really won it for me today.

TIM HENMAN: Yes.

TIM HENMAN: Obviously not always pace that counts. It's very unfortunate for him, you know, that he's had trouble with his elbow. Having said that, at times he was only serving 105 or something, but very accurately. If you're hitting the lines and the corners, it still makes life very difficult. Having said that, at 5-4 in the tiebreak, those were two good times to come up with some big serves.

TIM HENMAN: Yeah, a little bit. I think up until then I played very well. I couldn't really complain about anything. Had 40-15 in that game that I lost my serve. You know, having lost my serve, maybe the momentum swings with him a little bit. I think the sixth game was pretty crucial. He had a breakpoint. In fact, that was the game I think I hit some good volleys to hold on. I was able to hang in, though.

TIM HENMAN: Yeah. Obviously I was aware that he couldn't serve as hard as he liked. Having said that, you know, he has a very good -- very good other parts to his game. It's not as though he's just going to roll it in and you pick them off. He hits them well, volleys well, so life wasn't going to be made easy for me, that's for sure.

TIM HENMAN: I have to put this one behind me. It's something that I think I've always wanted to do maybe at some stage in my career probably before he retires. You know, I'm delighted to have the opportunity now. We've practiced quite a lot together in London. It will obviously be the first time we play.

TIM HENMAN: Definitely if there was one person that I probably learned -- one player I've learned the most from, I think it would probably be him, in his style of play, the way he handles himself on the court. You know, he's definitely been an inspiration.

TIM HENMAN: I don't think that's something I'll be concentrating on. Whenever you play some of the very top players, I think it's very important that you do just play the ball. The last thing you need to do is look at the other end and think, "I'm playing one of the greats." You won't be concentrating on what you're doing. I'll just be concentrating on my game and hopefully I can play as well as I did tonight.

TIM HENMAN: It's just very special. It's different to Wimbledon obviously. It was definitely one of the biggest and best matches of my career so far. There are moments when it is slightly off-putting if people call out between first and second serve, but that can happen anywhere. You just have to concentrate. I haven't had a problem with it in the two years that I've played. I'm enjoying myself.

TIM HENMAN: Yeah. It wasn't really the best time to be foot faulted. I think it is important to really keep your focus. If you're going to lose concentration in New York, it's probably going to be the hardest place to regain it.

TIM HENMAN: I don't know if it's not very good. I think it's probably players are not used to it. We don't play a great deal of night matches throughout the year. You're used to playing in sunlight. It's a different atmosphere as well. It's something that I very much enjoy. It's not always the occasion I play well in, under the lights, but don't always play well in daylight.

TIM HENMAN: It wasn't a miss-hit, but I think anyone within 20 yards of the court could have been in danger (laughter).

TIM HENMAN: I don't know if it's my kind of town, but I very much enjoy it. It's definitely one of my favorite tournaments. Being a Slam, Grand Slam, obviously makes it extra special. But everything, you know, the hotel is good, I like the surface, so I generally feel very comfortable here.

TIM HENMAN: Yeah, definitely.

TIM HENMAN: I think it's a very fair comment. I think in patches when I do play my best tennis, I'm a good player. It's the other times when my concentration does slip that I'll let back the very top players, let back any sort of player at this level into the match. I think it's fair to say if I'm going to progress further, that's something I'll need to try and cut out. We know it's a problem; now we have to deal with it.

TIM HENMAN: The first point is important in the game. Even when I was down, I just wanted to try and continue playing the way I had been. If I could do that, then things seemed to be going my way.

TIM HENMAN: I think I am improving, you know, all the time. I think mostly it's an experience thing. I'm playing a stadium match here at the US Open as a first, so having said that, I think mentally that's the area I need to improve the most. Hopefully if I can do that, then I will continue to move up the rankings.

TIM HENMAN: Help. I don't know. I was seeded something in the quallies, probably 135, around that area, 140 maybe.

TIM HENMAN: I knew coming into this event that I was in contention. It's an event that everybody would like to play in. Whether I qualify for it is a different matter. I have to just concentrate on what I'm doing here. If I play well here, then hopefully the Grand Slam Cup will take care of itself.

TIM HENMAN: I think it's right up there with my win against Kafelnikov at Wimbledon. Playing on stadium court -- first time playing center court at Wimbledon against Kafelnikov, first time here obviously. I'm proud of that.

TIM HENMAN: We practice together. That's about as far as it goes, I think. We practice quite a lot together. What more can I say?