TMS - MADRID

October 17, 2003

Younes El Aynaoui

THE MODERATOR: Questions for Younes.

YOUNES EL AYNAOUI: It was close. My serve helped me a lot, the second serve, the tiebreak. Then, you know, I think I played good shots. He was a little bit not doing too much. We play some rallies. His serve wasn't that effective. As we saw yesterday, Novak losing the second set, I almost experienced it against Ginepri, 6-4, 5-4. You feel the match is on your side, you lose the second set, it's tough to hold them. I think that's what happened?

YOUNES EL AYNAOUI: Yes, I think it's a big part of it. But all the players who are step in the court, you know, they are pumped and they want to do good. It's not enough. It's a conjunction of good form and mental desire on getting further to quarterfinals. It's a bit of everything.

YOUNES EL AYNAOUI: Kind of. I felt, you know, a couple of times I had my chances, I could go a little bit further. But those tournaments are so tough. You have a small draw with most of the best player in the world. From the first round, you know you going to have a tough opponent. In Miami this year, I lost to Agassi in the quarterfinals, so was a tough match. I think I feel, and the players, too, that I'm getting more and more dangerous. It's a surprise on one hand, and they know I'm playing at a high level for a year or two now. So one week has to be mine (smiling).

YOUNES EL AYNAOUI: I think it's a lot of things. You know, my family help me. The belief in, first of all, the media, all the people in Morocco, you know, try to push me all the time. To tell you the truth, most of the time when I go and play these guys, the Top 10 guys, I'm like, "Oh, these guys are really good, they play well." I have a lot of people around me that tells me that I play well, too, and I can do good. I'm not impressed anymore about anybody on the tour. The players knows also that I can play some good tennis, so that makes it easier for me.

YOUNES EL AYNAOUI: Well, a lot, of course. There is still very few spots, I think. I was watching the ranking. I take it as already something great. I'm going to improve my best year-end ranking ever, so maybe finish in the Top 20 for once. I see it on that side. For sure, if this week I end up with a victory, and the next week in Paris I do well, there's still a small chance.

YOUNES EL AYNAOUI: I was talking with Andres Gomez and Mancini the other day. They were impressed how the conditions have been slowing down on the indoor season. So for the type of player am I, I think it suits my game pretty good. A couple years ago, the courts were much faster. Today you can play from the baseline; you can also come in. The conditions here with the altitude makes it a little bit faster than some other indoors. But it's still very playable from the back. Everybody is hitting the ball very hard, that's true.

YOUNES EL AYNAOUI: Of course, there is the Roddick match in Australia. That was a good chance for me to go in the semifinals. But besides this, there was a great moment. I had some also very good moments in Wimbledon when I played on the Centre Court. Thatt was something very special. To reach the semifinals in a tournament like this, you know, I feel I still have some great moments coming on.

YOUNES EL AYNAOUI: I still didn't realize it, I think. I don't know how those players thinks. I wish I could be somewhere inside their brain and thinks how Roger Federer thinks. I'm always surprised by myself when I go through some matches like this. You know, yesterday I didn't think I could beat Grosjean, and today I beat him. I think every match is something that gives you more confidence and more knowledge about your capacity. Of course, today Roddick, Ferrero, they're both No. 1, very close. I beat both of them. I feel I'm more closer to these guys than a few years ago when Pete was on the top or people like this. So that gives me a chance to think that I can be up there, too.

YOUNES EL AYNAOUI: They were winning much more than anybody does it today. Today we see every Slams, there is a different winner. A few years ago, you had the same guy winning much more tournaments, or a few guys. Today, everybody is playing well. So everybody believe he can win a Slam. I think that's what made the difference. A few years ago, we knew that those top guys won't lose before the semifinals, and today there's so many surprises.

YOUNES EL AYNAOUI: I won't say that these guys are playing less than the other were, because it won't be fair. But I'm sure there is a bigger group behind that is pushing. I think that's what makes the difference. You won't see often some easy matches going 6-1, 6-1, something like that. You have to fight for every match. That makes the difference.

YOUNES EL AYNAOUI: Yeah. I was talking with Walt the other day. He tells me in most of the sports, like the sprinters, basketball players, these guys playing 36, 37, even 38 years old. They're still at their best. I think in the tennis what takes more from the guys, it's the traveling matter. I think when you're 31, 32, you start to raise a family. The toughest thing is to go away and spend the whole year in hotels and airport. I think that's what make them quit. But I think physically you can be strong in other sports. We saw Jimmy Connors playing pretty late, too.