VOLVO MONTE-CARLO OPEN

April 25, 1995

Stefan Edberg

STEFAN EDBERG: It hasn't been great: I don't know, I am just finding it a little bit tough at the moment. I played okay in the beginning of the year. Okay, I didn't do very well at the Australian Open; apart from that, I have been playing okay, but today was not very good. So it is the first clay court match and always a little bit difficult the first one, but I have to keep training and take the next tournament; just keep working; that is the only thing that you can do.

STEFAN EDBERG: I played quite a lot in the beginning of the year, or I had a lot of tournaments scheduled and I felt after working a lot; getting ready for Australia, then I should have played Stuttgart; then I got sick; then I played a lot in the states and I played Davis Cup. I felt that I needed a break. You got to start somewhere and I felt this was a good tournament to start, but, you know, it is still many weeks left.

STEFAN EDBERG: It was very windy. No, I mean, it wasn't too bad. I mean, there is nothing wrong with the court or anything. The things were wrong with me probably; obviously, it is a little bit slow today. I felt okay to begin with; then I just lost the rhythm and once you lose the rhythm on the clay, it is very difficult, so it wasn't easy, obviously.

STEFAN EDBERG: Yes.

STEFAN EDBERG: Well, when I played him a couple of times before on hardcourts, then it is obviously a different match. But if you are not sharp, if I don't play my game and don't attack the ball, he is very difficult to play because he gives you "nothing" balls and he is quick around the court and he passes quite well if you don't put any pressure on him. And he can play well at times. I mean, I have seen him play many, many good matches; obviously, he hasn't really got anything to hurt you. He is just a good counter-puncher, I would say. He takes advantage if you are not playing well.

STEFAN EDBERG: Well, the program as of now is I am playing in Rome next time, but --

STEFAN EDBERG: I have just decided because I played a lot last couple of years on the clay and I didn't really want to play that many tournaments on the clay, but the options are always open. There is Munich next week, Hamburg, and there is always the choice that you can -- if you feel like you are going to play, if you don't, you stay home and practice. So I just need a day after here to just to see what I am going to do because there is a chance that I will pick up another tournament and play.

STEFAN EDBERG: Yes.

STEFAN EDBERG: Yeah, I have been working the last couple of weeks and I have been feeling quite good and -- but everybody knows that playing tennis is one thing -- practicing is one thing and another thing is playing a match. I am spending the time that I need to do and, you know, obviously, I would have hoped to play a lot better than I did today because I have been playing quite, quite well in practice, but today was just a very awful day. So just have to keep training and -- because the tennis can come back very, very quickly and I know that.

STEFAN EDBERG: Today, everything. Apart from that, it is just -- I mean, it is not much. It just needs to be a little bit quicker and play a few more matches because it will come back quickly once you start getting the rhythm back then I will be fine, but it is always a little bit tricky on the clay because if you don't hit the ball well and you are not quite sure what you do, then it is a tough game out there