U.S. OPEN

September 8, 1993

Michael Chang

MICHAEL CHANG: As you can see, not really, I lost 6-1, 6-1. Third and fourth set, he started to play a lot better, I think. He started passing a little bit better, I think. I was attacking him pretty effectively in the first couple of sets. It was working well. I think that after that, he raised his game another level. I think when he does that he is a difficult player to beat. Didn't make a whole lot of errors from the backcourt, and you know, I didn't feel like he gave me a whole lot of opportunities out there.

MICHAEL CHANG: It is tough to say because I didn't play him in the Open. I think that for the two weeks that he won in 1990, he obviously was playing his best tennis for the whole two weeks, and I think it is difficult for me to really compare the two because I didn't play him in the Open. I think if you took the week before the Open, he is probably, you know, probably wasn't playing as well and as the Open came by, he peaked well. So I think that, you know, obviously he is going to be a very difficult player to beat here for the rest of the tournament, but, you know, still got a lot of tough players out there. It is important that for Pete, I think, to really concentrate on what he needs to do out there.

MICHAEL CHANG: I think the difficulty was I lost the break right back. I don't remember exactly what happened in that game. I know I netted a forehand to lose that game, but, you know, I think that overall, the first couple of sets were very, very close and a few points here and there, I could have been up two sets to Love. But I think even if I was up 2 sets to Love, I probably still would have lost the match if Pete maintained his play as he did.

MICHAEL CHANG: Well, I think it is, you know, it is difficult to say because if you get a guy who serves just as well as Pete - I mean if they are acing each other left and right, you know, you have no other plays on the ball. If a guy is able to match him ace for ace, and I think depending upon the surface as well, doesn't give Pete a chance to show off the rest of his game. I think that Pete is probably one of the most complete players out there; probably one of the most talented, if not the most talented out there. Pete really can do everything: serve, volley, he can hit winners from the backcourt, and you see only maybe a handful of players that are able to do that on the tour nowadays. Pete definitely is one of them.

MICHAEL CHANG: I don't know. Go over there and snap his strings; I don't know. I don't know. Maybe get Princess Di over here. It is tough. I think that, you know, it is tough when he is playing that well. You can do various things to try and turn the tide a little bit, but it is tough when you are playing that well.

MICHAEL CHANG: Well, I think a record is still only a record. I think that most of my wins came early before he won the Open, and, you know, I haven't played Pete since last year at the Lipton, so, you know, I think that he is a much better player, and I think he has matured as a person; the people around him have helped him to mature. I think that that has played a definite role in his game.

MICHAEL CHANG: I gave it my best today. I think in the third and fourth sets I got a little bit tired out there. I basically, I did what I wanted to do; it just wasn't good enough today. Basically, I have no -- I have no regrets from today at all. I think that the first set, second set were really the way that I wanted to play, and after that Pete was just too good. So I think that first couple of sets, it worked well for me. It really did. But Pete at the end was just a little bit sharper than I was.

MICHAEL CHANG: Depends on which surface, I think. I think you have to take Jim and Andre on the clay. On the grass, I think you have to take -- that is a tough one. On the grass, I think Pete, probably, you know -- Boris, theoretically looking on paper should be Andre on grass, but a lot of it is mental for Boris. It is a tough one there. On hardcourt, that is tough. It is a tough call because when those guys are playing well, people say when Boris plays well, plays his best is unbeatable. People say when Pete is playing his best he is unbeatable. You know, that is a tough call.

MICHAEL CHANG: Well, I was just basically just downright attacking him period. I knew that at the beginning of the match I had to do that in order to come out on top. You know Pete against a player who is always -- who is known to always attack, always be aggressive, if you put him in -- for me, my goal was to put him in a position where he was uncomfortable; in a position where he was doing something where he is not normally used to doing. Basically, that is what I tried to do. Because Pete is a tough player. If you just-- if you are just content to play from the back, sooner or later he is going to hit one big shot and he is going -- it is going to be in; he is going at the net. He is a tough player when he is up there. He has got good reach and good height.

MICHAEL CHANG: What did he say to me? I think he said bad luck, I think he said that.

MICHAEL CHANG: I think. It is normal for a player to do that when they lose. Basically I said good luck.