AUSTRALIAN OPEN

January 22, 2003

Younes El Aynaoui

YOUNES EL AYNAOUI: Yes, right now I'm a bit disappointed, of course. I thought I had a great opportunity to go in the semifinals. But I think Andy played a great match. I know I wasn't very far from winning that match. I'm a bit disappointed right now, but after all, I had a good tournament. It's good for me for the future.

YOUNES EL AYNAOUI: Yeah, I think people are realizing that I'm playing good level. Of course, I lost the match, so I'm a bit tired now. After all, there is a winner and a loser at the end. You know, to lose against Andy, it's a bit tough. But he was very good today.

YOUNES EL AYNAOUI: No, I know my condition is good. I don't have cramps that often. Usually I can hang out in those long matches. He was doing pretty well, too. I thought he might get a little bit tired, but he kept his level during the whole match. He's in good form, too.

YOUNES EL AYNAOUI: No, I'm doing a lot of running. I think that's why it helps. Basically I work a lot on my physical. Today it paid off, even if I felt a little bit tired at the end. I'm sure he was, too. This is our job, so we have to be ready to play those kind of matches. We were both ready today.

YOUNES EL AYNAOUI: No, no. I was always confident. It hurts when you have a match point, I think I had match point at 5-4. He played a great shot on the match point. That hurts a little bit. But when I came back a break down, he served for the match, and I broke him, I got a lot of energy after that. I was focusing. I had some juice on a couple of games. One ball could have changed. But he always played well those points.

YOUNES EL AYNAOUI: Well, he's 21. I guess he can recover pretty well. He also has his own physiotherapist with him, so they're going to work on tonight and tomorrow. For sure he'll be a little bit tired. But I think he'll be in good shape.

YOUNES EL AYNAOUI: No, I think the great audience, the crowd. Everybody stayed until the end, you know, five hours. They were pushing us at the end. They were not with Andy or with me, they were just enjoying a good match. That's terrific for us, when you play and you feel the crowd is supporting you.

YOUNES EL AYNAOUI: Yeah, it was right before my serve. But I don't think he did it to do that. But, for sure, I got broken right after that. Maybe I lost my concentration a little bit. But I think this is part of the game. It could happen to him. I was not serving that well at the end, not so many first serves. I felt he had the chance to break me.

YOUNES EL AYNAOUI: In the second set, yeah. I thought I could -- I knew we going to have to play some tiebreakers in this match. I thought I had a better chance on the breaker. He just made a mini break at 5-All. That was it. He played well the important points. I think I was maybe a little bit too defensive. I should come in more, take some risks. But he took them, and it pays off for him.

YOUNES EL AYNAOUI: No, I was very happy the way I was playing. I got an early break, so it wasn't really into it in the beginning, so I kept it. I was really feeling great on the court. I was moving very well. I think if I had take the second set, it would have been mine. But then he raise up the level, and he play really well.

YOUNES EL AYNAOUI: Yeah, I called my parents, my wife, too. They stayed five hours in front of the TV. I think they were more tired than I was after this match. But yeah, it was on national TV. Morocco, too. I think people understood that I gave everything and I tried my best, but at the end you have to have a winner and a loser, and this time it didn't go for me. But I think, after all, it's a good match and a good performance.

YOUNES EL AYNAOUI: Yeah, I definitely would like to see where I missed the opportunities. But I feel it now already that I wasn't coming in enough. I should have come in to the net and make him pass me. Sometimes maybe it was because I was a little bit tired, but I didn't come in enough. That was the key, I think, because I was returning better his serve, and I should come in on the slice, on the forehand in the fifth set.

YOUNES EL AYNAOUI: Tiebreak? No, I think it's too tough. When you're playing for four hours, you have two sets apiece, then it's end on a tiebreaker, just one-point difference can make it. I think it's better to have these two games difference on the fifth set. Sometimes you can get pretty long, but I think it's more fair. You can really see the difference, yeah.