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TMS MONTE CARLOApril 20, 2000Juan Carlos FerreroQ. Were you inspired by last night's soccer match? JUAN CARLOS FERRERO: Yes, I am happy because Madrid won. I am from Valencia so I was happy to see that Valencia won too. I hope both will go to the finals and that Valencia will beat Barcelona. Q. What happened to you in the second set today? You asked for the doctor. What was the problem? JUAN CARLOS FERRERO: In fact, I had a little cut on the finger and I was afraid it was going to open a bit more, so I just asked for a tape on the finger and nothing else. It was not serious. Q. Was it restricting you on the double-handed backhand at all? JUAN CARLOS FERRERO: Well, it bothered me a little bit because the cut was opening more and more so that is why I asked for a tape and after that I didn't feel anything anymore. Q. How come that you are not training in Barcelona with, perhaps, all the Spanish players? JUAN CARLOS FERRERO: Well, I am training in Vilenna with my coach Antonio and it has been ten years now and I hope we will go as further as possible with these conditions. We have to work more than in Barcelona and I am very happy. Q. Spanish player are very well known for the ability to play on clay, but the fact that Carlos Moya and Alex Corretja have played good on the hard court, two years ago, in fact, did it change the way the young Spanish players see the Tour, the game? JUAN CARLOS FERRERO: It is true that Spanish players are good on clay but they are adapting more and more on fast surfaces. There was the finals of the Masters and Carlos in Indian Wells and I always trained on hard surfaces myself. I think the trend is that Spanish players are adapting more and more to hard surfaces. Q. Second only to Lleyton Hewitt you have been identified by the world's press as probably one of the next big stars of tennis. Are you happy with that reputation and do you think you deserve it? JUAN CARLOS FERRERO: Yes, I am a bit like him. We play very fast, very physical, and both of us, we have not arrived yet, but we are the closest one to come. Q. How did it happen that you choose tennis when you were a kid, not something else, for instance, soccer or bullfights or something? JUAN CARLOS FERRERO: Well, when I was young I was playing soccer and tennis and little by little I had dedicated myself more and more to tennis and finally I stayed with tennis. At school I became more serious with tennis and I devoted myself entirely to tennis, but the thing is, I started playing with my father and we were going from soccer to tennis and tennis to soccer and finally I stayed with tennis. Q. But are you an aficionado of bulls? JUAN CARLOS FERRERO: Yes, I am very excited by that. In fact, in my village there is a fiesta, a feast, and they leave the bulls free in the streets and we have to run and I like a lot to run. Q. You are still a young man. Who are your sporting heroes? Are they the real Madrid football players or are they tennis players? JUAN CARLOS FERRERO: When I was little I was always interested by tennis players and not so much by soccer players. Of course, I followed the Madrid club and I was interested more and more by soccer. But I always wanted to be a tennis player. Q. What dreams did you have once you decided you wanted to be a tennis player and you have made such quick progress, how surprised are you about it? JUAN CARLOS FERRERO: Well, every tennis player dreams of winning a Grand Slam tournament. I was always dreaming of winning the French Open. That is the tournament I like best. And I also want to be remembered as one of the best players in history and that is why I am working hard to become one of the best players in history. Q. Do you think you are a contender for the title at Roland Garros this year or would that have to be in years to come? JUAN CARLOS FERRERO: This year it seems rather early. I am only 20, but who knows, I have a strong desire to do well there. But if I lose in the first round, it doesn't matter, nothing happens. But I want to do well there. Winning the French Open is neither close nor far away. It might be this year or another year, one year anyway, maybe within ten years. Q. What do you think is the best match you have ever played and who is it against? JUAN CARLOS FERRERO: I remember the match against Alex in Mallorca and the match against Kafelnikov in Davis Cup. These are the most important matches for me, the two most important ones. Q. A group of us last night, the English, went to the Kingshead Pub to watch the match on television. Where do you watch the match? Did you watch the football with friends or in your room or did you go to a restaurant? JUAN CARLOS FERRERO: In fact, I watched quietly the match in my room because if I watch it with the Catalans I get nervous and excited. Q. The European Cup final - I might be wrong on the dates - but is usually during the weeks of Roland Garros and this year it is instead in the Saint Denis Stadium. How nice a scenario would that be to do well at Roland Garros and see Real Madrid get the Cup in Saint Denis? JUAN CARLOS FERRERO: I hope it will happen that way, that I will be in the Finals in the French Open and I hope Madrid will win. Q. One inevitable British question: Are you going to play Wimbledon this year and how much have you played on grass? JUAN CARLOS FERRERO: Yes, I am going to play Wimbledon, but I never played on real grass until now. Only on synthetic grass. I like this surface quite well. I think it is fun to play on this surface and I really am eager to play in Wimbledon and I hope I will do well and that I won't be out of the tournament too early. Q. Do you also play golf and, if so, is Ballesteros a hero? JUAN CARLOS FERRERO: I didn't play very much golf until now. I start playing golf in the tournament of Dubai. I played with my coach. There was a training camp there. But finally I gave up because it was 20 minutes away and we didn't have time but in the future I might play a bit more golf. Q. And Ballesteros? JUAN CARLOS FERRERO: Yes, of course I like to watch golf and I like when the Spanish do well. End of FastScripts… |
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