US OPEN

September 11, 2004

Lleyton Hewitt

THE MODERATOR: First question, please.

LLEYTON HEWITT: Yeah, I've had to play against other Aussie guys in the past. It's something that, you know, you just got to really put your competitive hat on out there and just worry about trying to get the job done and not worrying about who's on the other side of the net.

LLEYTON HEWITT: Not necessarily. It's awkward. Obviously, I know his game, but he knows mine as well. It's awkward on, you know, knowing someone that you've practiced with a lot and going out there and actually have to play him. That's his biggest match and one of my biggest matches as well, in a semi of a Grand Slam. So it's a little bit awkward.

LLEYTON HEWITT: Not yet, no. No.

LLEYTON HEWITT: Well, she was going to be happy for someone and disappointed for someone no matter what. It's an awkward situation, but I'm sure in the years to come we'll probably have it a lot more than just this first time today.

LLEYTON HEWITT: Not really, I wasn't, you know, looking much past the guys that I had to play and just taking it one match at a time. You know, obviously once I got through my match and he had to play Roddick, then there was always going to be a chance in a two-horse race. But until then I wasn't really worrying about it too much.

LLEYTON HEWITT: Yeah, probably. I feel good at the moment. I haven't spent a lot of energy out there. I feel confident where my game's at at the moment as well.

LLEYTON HEWITT: Not a lot. Whether I went through in five sets or whatever, just to get through to the final more than anything. So I won't be focusing on, you know, the fact that I haven't dropped a set going into tomorrow's match at all.

LLEYTON HEWITT: Not really. I feel like I've played pretty well this whole year. You know, in most tournaments, obviously clay is not my strongest surface, but I feel like I had a good clay court season. Grass court, I felt like I played well. The two guys I lost to is Roddick and Federer in my two grass court tournaments. But I feel like, you know, this whole year I've played pretty consistently. I enjoy playing on the American hard courts here, and, you know, obviously, picking up confidence, you know, winning some matches as well, that's always going to help.

LLEYTON HEWITT: Not really. Those two guys were making -- obviously Roddick won one here and Federer had won a fair few Grand Slams. They're playing No. 1 and 2 in the world. Didn't really worry me too much. You've got to get the runs on the board and go out there and make semis and finals of Grand Slams and really challenge the best guys out there.

LLEYTON HEWITT: Felt like this whole year I've been playing pretty well. The guys that I lost to in the Slams, I lost to both Roger in the Aussie and Wimbledon. Those two matches I felt like I played extremely well. Was probably a little unlucky that I drew him in the earlier rounds, Round of 16 and a quarter. I knew I was not far off the mark. As I said, I like playing in the US Open. I think the conditions, the atmosphere here really suits. I think the court surface suits my game. I felt confident, obviously, coming in, winning a lot of matches.

LLEYTON HEWITT: Not when you beat Ferrero and Federer in two Davis Cup matches at the end of last year. So, you know, they were the No. 1 and 2 players in the world at the time. Didn't really enter my mind too much.

LLEYTON HEWITT: Who's that, sorry?

LLEYTON HEWITT: Yeah, I think so. I think this time last year I played extremely well at the US Open here. There was no shame in losing to Juan Carlos Ferrero in the quarters. It was an extremely tough match that could have gone either way. Then he went on to beat Andre in four sets and lose to Roddick in the final. Since then, I've played extremely well. Obviously had a big break between the Federer Davis Cup match and the Ferrero one. But I was able to do a lot of fitness work and I guess just freshen up as well for the whole 2004 season. I think that's been one huge positive going through this whole year.

LLEYTON HEWITT: Well, little bit surprised but not overly surprised. He's got a great game and he's got a lot of talent. He's obviously a little bit raw at the moment, you know. He just hasn't been in this position of playing in big matches. But, yeah, with this week he's going to go well and truly into the Top 20 in the rankings. That's where he deserves to be with his game.

LLEYTON HEWITT: It's a weird feeling. Obviously, I was on a flight straight after I had just won my first major when it happened. I didn't know until I touched down in Sydney anything about it. So it's -- it was a real weird feeling back then purely because we'd just been in New York and, you know, nothing had happened. Then you hop on a plane and, you know, the whole world's changed in a lot of ways. All the memories of that, I guess. That was two days after I won my first major, obviously, as well.

LLEYTON HEWITT: I look forward to playing a final against anyone in a major. Obviously, playing Roger, No. 1 player in the world, I'm going to have to play some great tennis to get on top of him. But I feel like I'm playing well at the moment and I give myself a good chance.

LLEYTON HEWITT: Not really. I feel like I'm wasting my breath, but that's about it.

LLEYTON HEWITT: Yeah, it's an awkward day, but, you know, we can't do much about it either. You got to play a semi of a Grand Slam on the same day. It's obviously awkward, TV in the locker room and everything are going through tributes at Ground Zero, stuff like that. Makes you think a lot about tennis as a sport and there's a lot more to life than just winning a couple of tennis matches as well.

LLEYTON HEWITT: Not really. You know, Roger's such a good player and, yeah, if I've got to play him, he's obviously come through and beaten Agassi and Henman and won big matches here in the past. So I don't, you know, I don't think that's a huge advantage.

LLEYTON HEWITT: I don't know. There's not a lot of them (smiling).

LLEYTON HEWITT: Oh, it would be great, you know, obviously, to win another Grand Slam. And, you know, that's where my priorities are - the four majors and Davis Cup. The last major of the year. Yeah, it's a great opportunity for me to go out there and actually play for the title here again.

LLEYTON HEWITT: I'm not sure. I'm obviously very competitive and love getting out there and, you know, trying to improve my game as well. I think Roger has obviously tried to take the game to another level. You've got to keep working and work on your weaknesses and try and improve those to stay with the best guys and stay at the top of the game.

LLEYTON HEWITT: Yeah, you know, I've obviously got a good record against Tim. We've had a lot of tight matches in the past. He's going to mix his game up a lot. He serve-volleys, he stays back, he chip charges. You know, he does a lot of different stuff against me out there. It would be a tough match. It would be Tim's first Grand Slam final. You know, who would have thought it would be the US Open before Wimbledon. But, you know, it's still not as much pressure on him here, I guess, as there is at Wimbledon.

LLEYTON HEWITT: Yeah, with records maybe, but they're both class players. I mean, in a big situation, I don't think records are going to account for a lot out there tomorrow. You've got one match and you've got to go out there and compete and handle the pressure and the expectation. And, you know, obviously Roger has been able to do that extremely well in Grand Slam finals.

LLEYTON HEWITT: Yeah, but, you know, final's a final. If it's Tim, it's still going to be a massive day for me tomorrow. You know, obviously playing Roger, with the way his ranking is, his form at the moment, going for his third Slam of the year, it makes it into a huge match. But playing Tim as well, in a Grand Slam final just to try to win the US Open, Tim will be going for his first major. Obviously, he's pretty hungry to get that one under his belt as well. So for me it's just a matter of trying to block out all the outside pressures and influences, I guess, and just concentrating on my game tomorrow no matter who I'm up against.

LLEYTON HEWITT: Yeah, there's no doubt there were only a couple points here and there. I could have been up a set and a break at Melbourne. Wimbledon, I was broken the end of the fourth set and wasn't able to consolidate that break and take it to a fifth set. That's what you have to do against the best guys in the world - whether it's Roger, Andre, Andy, whoever. You've got to be able to do that. There's only a couple points within a match. Whether that's going to be the same case tomorrow, whether it's only two or three points to change the outcome of the a match, but you've got to be able to step on those points and play the points well.

LLEYTON HEWITT: Not necessarily. I just felt like this year I just want to continue my run. I felt like I was starting to hit some pretty good form coming in. I enjoy playing on the hard court season. I just didn't feel like, you know, Cincinnati and Washington had taken a real heap out of me physically. That's why I wanted to keep going in Long Island. Yeah, I think this year it definitely paid off, though, coming into the US Open.

LLEYTON HEWITT: I think the way that I've played last couple of days, I'm definitely in with a shot; there's no doubt about that. But, you know, I think I can still improve on some areas. If I can do that, then obviously I'm going to have a better chance. But, you know, a lot depends on what your opponent does as well. There's only two guys out there. You know, playing Tommy Haas and also Johansson is a little bit different to maybe Roger Federer who's been out there and won Grand Slams. So, you really -- sometimes you can only do as much as your opponent lets you do as well.

LLEYTON HEWITT: Probably at some stage. I'll probably practice my golf against him (laughter).

LLEYTON HEWITT: No. He's already -- he'll probably -- he's already made a few comments to me in the locker room. He's not gonna get me a Christmas present. He reckons that was mine today, so anyway (smiling)...