PILOT PEN INTERNATIONAL

August 22, 1998

Richard Krajicek

Q. Up 6-3 in the first set, serving, what happened?

RICHARD KRAJICEK: Well, I went for a big return on 6-3 and missed it just 15 feet and then, yeah, I played a decent point. I played very lazy chip approach and then on 6-5, yeah, I felt I won the set. Then, yeah, a little bit of a disappointment and I let it get in my head and I missed a relatively easy volley, then a doublefault, then he come with a big serve, so, yeah, it was a little bit of a strange tiebreaker. I mean, I played pretty good up 'til 6-3 and then, yeah, I went for it a little bit and then I thought I won the set and then suddenly you have to go back and serve your second serve and lost a little concentration and I was a little bit irritated after -- throughout the whole match. I think maybe showed a little bit of tiredness from, I think, especially yesterday evening and maybe just from last couple of days, fourth match in four days, and maybe started to show a little bit. Also noticing my movements that I was just a little bit slow, just a little bit lazy up to a couple of shots. Especially like the easier shots when you have to move your feet, I wasn't moving them.

RICHARD KRAJICEK: No, I felt like irritated the whole match, and then that one, if you -- not mentally 100% like that you can take things, such a big point even irritates you more than normal. Of course, it gets to you a little bit, of course, if you have the feeling that you hit an ace and it is a bad call, but normally you can shake it off and just okay concentrate and win the point. But today I just let it get to me more than maybe I should have.

RICHARD KRAJICEK: In a way, shorter time, but the nice thing was -- it was pretty hot yesterday, that is also nice to play in the evening. But everything went pretty quick by the time I fell asleep, it was pretty late. Next morning, yeah, I go to the Jim, I ride the bike a little bit, before I know it I have to head to the courts and get ready for my match. I felt like I only slept and ate and warmed up and that was basically it. Didn't really have time for myself. It was hot yesterday, so in that sense it was maybe nice to play at night. But it was pretty short time between matches.

RICHARD KRAJICEK: I felt that. I think it was combination of two things, that it was the fourth day, fourth match in four days, and also yesterday there was -- it was so -- it was pretty late and it was a long match, two hours and 20 minutes or something and it was mentally strange, physically also I think a little bit more than I thought it would be. But especially mentally. Yeah, you feel it a little bit. But especially, like I said, I felt it in my attitude that I was just more irritated about missed shots than I normally was. I just let it get to me more normally than you should.

RICHARD KRAJICEK: I don't know, about six, seven hours.

RICHARD KRAJICEK: Yeah, but with Pete maybe it was different. It was the finals of a Super 9 and he really had the feeling after Wimbledon he was on a roll so, for him, it was important mentally I think going to the Open because I really feels that he wants to win the Open, of course. Somehow it really bothered him. It bothered me today and I took it with me in the second set, but I think if I have a good night sleep and I am rested, I am relaxed, and I look back on this week, that I have played a couple of decent matches and I feel ready for the Open and it was only set point. Sampras, it was matchpoint, so it was a little bit different score. But yeah, I hope that in four days I am not going to be talking -- still talking about it. I mean, that is what he was doing, so I hope I don't do that.

RICHARD KRAJICEK: I think he has got a pretty good return. I don't think it is really unbelievable. What he does well and that is maybe his advantage against Goran, the better you serve, the better he returns; especially when it is away from him. Especially on the forehand, I think. But I like his second shot a lot. I mean, his return is good. It is a solid return and -- in general, but the second shot, that is where he makes his points. He can suddenly accelerate down-the-line or crosscourt and moves very well. So I think that is the key for him just to get the ball in play and Goran doesn't play serve and volley all the time and I think he can beat Goran from the back. So the key tomorrow is to serve good for him, like solid, at least that he holds his serve or at least Goran can't take a swing at it too much and try to get the serve back. Once he gets in a rally, I think he has a chance.

RICHARD KRAJICEK: I think I would have to go for Goran. It has nothing to do with quality, the way that Karol -- he had to serve it out today. He didn't serving it out too well. I should have come back in the second set. So I don't know how he is feeling in closing matches out. And Goran looked pretty confident today also. He was serving big and taking swings at everything from the baseline and hitting the ball very clean. I think Goran, yeah, is feeling very good and if he is serving big, even though I didn't -- Karol has a better baseline game than Goran's baseline game, will step up a gear, he is just going to go for winners. Karol needs to run a lot tomorrow and keep the ball in play.

RICHARD KRAJICEK: Yeah, it is okay. I can wait 'til the Open. I mean, a loss is never revenged well -- it is nice to beat somebody, but it is always nicer to beat somebody in a Slam. He beat me in a very, very not -- very tough way and in the Slam and even though -- if I would have won today, I would have beaten him tomorrow, it would make it a little bit nicer, but it is nicer to beat him in a best of five match.

RICHARD KRAJICEK: I think tennis-wise I can do it. Depends, I think -- it is important, when it is really hot and humid, I tend to struggle with the weather conditions and last year was very nice weather, I thought. It was for me very comfortable to play and yeah, very close three sets even though it was to Rusedski and two tiebreakers in -- to go to the semis. That was the first time I had a feeling I had a shot at the Open. That is what I find difficult at the Open, it is like a killing day and you have a guy like, I don't know, Andre or Chang or those guys who somehow never get bothered by the heat or at least it looks like that, then it can be very difficult. But tennis-wise, I have, for sure, a very good shot of doing well. But if suddenly it is 109% humidity, then I have to look match by match. I am not going to look too far ahead though.

RICHARD KRAJICEK: No, I am not trying to get psyched out about it. I see it the day before I am not going to say, oh, my God, it is going to be hot tomorrow, but I am just going to do everything that is necessary, drink plenty of fluids, and take minerals before the match and just do what I can and try to stay calm, not panic. It is very important that you don't try to fight the heat. But then I really have to take it one match at a time and not look at it, oh, I have a good shot at winning it or going to the semis. Then, yeah, it takes a lot out of you physically.

RICHARD KRAJICEK: It was not -- I don't want to blame the line call too much. It was just -- what I did notice today - and I don't know if it was the match from yesterday or the tiebreak from yesterday or the last four days - is that I was just punchy and that is not a good sign. I know I am moving my legs a little bit less; that is a sign that you are a tired. When you are punchy and a little bit tired, you are able to take less. I think that was the big thing today that you have to be able to take the good with the bad and I was taking the good, okay, but I was taking the bad pretty bad.

RICHARD KRAJICEK: Well, the statement was six years ago and I was pretty young then and I think the women's Tour is looking very good. I don't know how the fitness level is, if it's good or bad, but I think the way they are doing in the States, they are very popular in TV and are doing better than the men. I think the women's Tour can be happy with the way they have developed and out of fitness level, I think they are just athletes and professional athletes and they know what to do to get ready for their level of competition and I guess they do it okay.

RICHARD KRAJICEK: Well, I knew that his serve is maybe not so good, so I knew he was going to come out and try to break me to win the match because that he prefers that. He prefers to counterpunch than to close it out himself, I think. I knew it was a big game at 5-4. I felt if I can hold on and maybe that was a shot. I still wasn't certain at 5-4 and unfortunately my fears were a little bit right. But it wasn't a big game because if it would have gone back to 5-All, then maybe I would be discouraged, I didn't think he even felt it as a break when I broke him, he was waiting for the return of serve almost.

RICHARD KRAJICEK: I just went one time this week. Took me two hours to get a good seat. I ate too much. It is not healthy for me.