ATP MASTERS SERIES- MADRID

October 21, 2004

Andre Agassi

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

ANDRE AGASSI: Yeah, Tommy and I haven't played in a long time. He's been certainly playing well this week. I think he's improved since the last time we've played. I think it should be a tough match. I hope I can keep up the standard I've been playing.

ANDRE AGASSI: Well, I've been working hard, no question. It's possible. Yeah, I mean...

ANDRE AGASSI: Well, I've been working hard, so I appreciate that. I try to base it on how strong I feel and how well I'm moving about the court. Both of those feel pretty good - even a little better than the summer.

ANDRE AGASSI: I think so. You know, I mean, really you only -- you only can judge yourself against what you needed today. I think Vince was a little flat. He was missing more than he probably normally does, which always helps. He had Love-40 the first set, 15-40, had another breakpoint in a different game. If you can get through those games, it makes your life a lot easier out there. Certainly a lot of things fell right for me today.

ANDRE AGASSI: I'm sure he's going to have a lot of things for me to deal with. You know, he's a good mover. He has a big forehand. He knows how to play the game very smart. You know, for me I just want to execute my game and make him play a great match to win. Then hopefully I can find a way.

ANDRE AGASSI: Yeah. I tell you, I got so much support here two years ago. I had to play two Spanish players, Lopez, then Ferrero. They both were very good matches. I felt after this I got a lot of support. To come back here two years later, it feels real good. I feel very confident when I'm playing here in front of the fans. I think they're a very passionate crowd. I always enjoy that.

ANDRE AGASSI: Well, knowing me, I'll be 80 years old still saying, "I can get better, I can get better." I always believe you can improve. This is necessary for me to continue. If I believe this, then I'm very motivated. So I don't know how I compare to myself years ago, but I feel like the challenges get tougher and tougher with the players, with every year that goes by. And I still feel like I can do it at the highest level. So that's important for me.

ANDRE AGASSI: Well, I approach it from a year standpoint. You know, I say I'm going to play a full schedule next year. You hope you stay healthy and you hope this is possible. The difficulty, if you always assess every month or every week, I mean, you're not concentrating on what you have to do. You have to work and you have to keep trying, and then at the end you say, "What do I want to do now? Where am I with my career, with my game?" You know, if I allowed myself the luxury of sort of assessing in the middle of this year, you know, I never would have won Cincinnati or I never would have had a chance at the US Open because things were very down for me then. But I'm going to play a full schedule next year, then we'll see.

ANDRE AGASSI: My sister five years ago, four and a half years ago, was diagnosed with breast cancer, and my mom the same year.

ANDRE AGASSI: They're doing great. They're much better fighters than I am, much stronger.

ANDRE AGASSI: Well, I watched it. I didn't wonder how he could do it, because when you're a kid, you take everything sort of for face value, you know, you're watching them do it. I think I appreciate it more now than when I was growing up. The older I get, the more I respect an accomplishment like that. Certainly I believe he even had a 20-year span between Wimbledon finals, which is maybe -- maybe more than that even, which is quite remarkable. It's certainly an inspiration now.

ANDRE AGASSI: I don't own Gil. He's not property. Gil is a man of great knowledge and great experience and certainly high principles and high standards. I've trusted my life to him, so I certainly give him the freedom to make any decision he feels he needs to. But I think Guillermo is thinking smartly (smiling).

ANDRE AGASSI: I'm worried about one person right now: that's my next opponent. You know, sports, you have to get out there and you have to be the best person on the day. Every day is a new one. For me it's one at a time.