DAVIS CUP - USA vs AUSTRALIA

July 12, 1999

Todd Martin

TODD MARTIN: I heard that. That's very exciting for us because historically we haven't done that well, at least in the last few years. We're all excited about having a packed house and an environment that's -- or a community that's really here for us to be here.

TODD MARTIN: I think that's been a little bit misconstrued. I've told Tom that I feel like he should do -- I think we should have the best team out on the court. If he thinks that I'm not part of it, that's fine; I'm not upset. I have said that I would just sit out. I think if Tom feels like I should be on the court, I'd like to be on the court.

TODD MARTIN: No. Not as a group.

TODD MARTIN: Not formally. We've been together as a group, but in a casual sense.

TODD MARTIN: Well, I think you need to be a little bit more specific.

TODD MARTIN: We all are unique in ourselves, in our own sense. We have different skills and abilities on the court and also off the court, and, somehow, we blend those together and do well. We get along well off the court, and that sometimes is more important than how we get along on the court considering usually we're out there by ourselves.

TODD MARTIN: Well, it's unique, but I'd certainly rather have Pete rooting for me than on the other side of the net. So it's a nice change. It's a real pleasant change to have guys you consider your friends out watching each other play and backing each other. That's obviously, by the nature of our business, that's not what happens week in and week out.

TODD MARTIN: That's very different, too. In fact, each of us probably deal with it in a different way. Some guys don't care to have much said or pointed out; some guys are a sponge and want everything that the captain needs to be said; others probably are sort of right in between and have a little bit more casual approach to it. So it's a difficult task for Tom to have to cope with, but he knows us all well enough to know what our comfort level is with input.

TODD MARTIN: Mine? I'm sort of right in the middle. If things are going well, I'd just as soon not rock the boat at all. And if I struggle a little bit, I'll ask Tom a few questions or just basically ask for his input. And, also, on some of the more nerve-racking moments, it's good for me just to have somebody to ask, just ask stupid questions, irrelevant to tennis, just sort of somehow get your mind off of it a little bit and relax.

TODD MARTIN: I feel good about it. I had about a week off. I feel well-rested and well-healed from the experience over in London. I felt like I played well over there; I just ran into a guy who played a little bit better than I did on a given day. So, hopefully, that will continue, and I'll continue to improve. I've only hit three times since then. Today it felt a little bit better. Hopefully, I'll continue to improve the rest of the week.

TODD MARTIN: A difficult situation, no. It was an interesting one. Boy, it was music to my ears. I thought the way he went about it was great. For the first time, I think he initiated the contact with Tom about playing, and I felt like that was enough right there to convince me of his intentions and his desire to be on our team. It's been a little bit difficult, I think, for him in some ways to feel like he's not sort of jumping on the bandwagon. But I think Jim and I have tried to put his mind at ease with that. He's committed for the year, and I just hope he enjoys it so in the future he'll continue to want to be a part of it.

TODD MARTIN: Well, I don't want to say it's on par with the four Majors. I sometimes feel like the Davis Cup is a better experience than the Grand Slams. But I say that because winning and losing, the emotions that come with those results are a little bit more extreme in Davis Cup.

TODD MARTIN: When you win, you feel great, as good as you can feel. But when you lose, it rips at your heart a bit, and I'm sure that's due to the pressure and also due to just wanting to do well for your team and for your country.

TODD MARTIN: We've had plenty of notice. We knew Mark wasn't going to play a week and a half ago. Some of us were aware that Todd might not be playing late last week. Personally, I don't think their team is a whole lot, if any, weaker. I think that Lleyton Hewitt and hard court conditions are tough. And instead of Todd Woodbridge, it's Sandon Stolle, the third-ranked doubles player in the world, so I don't see that as a big loss.