WESTERN AND SOUTHERN FINANCIAL GROUP MASTERS

August 17, 2003

Mardy Fish

Q. Mardy, is this a kind of mixed emotions? Obviously disappointed in not pulling it out, but really pleased with your performance, I would think?

MARDY FISH: I mean I'm sure I'll look back, you know, in a couple days or whatever, once I get over the fact that I did have two match points to win my first tournament, and you know, I'm sure I'll just say it was a great tournament, but I'll always -- hopefully not forever -- say "what if," "what if I could have won one of those points." But we'll see, I guess.

MARDY FISH: I was just playing. I didn't -- I kept trying to think about, you know, when we were practicing back when we were younger, and it was just no different, you know, just on a bigger stage, and you know, so it wasn't -- I didn't take it like -- I definitely didn't -- never thought about, you know, winning my first tournament, you know, when I had match points at all. I was just trying to win a match.

MARDY FISH: Yeah. I pretty much did that the whole match, and I just came out on the wrong side.

MARDY FISH: Sure. I know, and I think that I'm sure he knows that, you know, I know him a lot better than everybody else does out here, and you know, I think that he knows that he doesn't scare me. And you know, I definitely respect his game, but you know, I definitely think that I can beat him, and I know that he doesn't scare me, and I think he knows that as well.

MARDY FISH: I mean, yeah, I mean it means that I made the finals of a tournament, and that was the first time that I've ever lost a match when I didn't lose my serve. And just happened to be in the finals of one of the biggest tournaments -- finals of one of the biggest -- the biggest match of my life, and it's just unfortunate that, you know, I definitely had chances. He had chances. I had chances to break, and I just didn't get it done.

MARDY FISH: Like what?

MARDY FISH: Ever.

MARDY FISH: Not ever. I mean that I can remember, anyways, on Tour for sure.

MARDY FISH: I don't know. I mean a loss is a loss whether you lose 7-6 in the third or 6-0, 6-0. I'm going to take a loss as a loss, and you know, I mean I definitely felt that I could have won the match, and I don't know. I mean I guess --

MARDY FISH: His play this summer?

MARDY FISH: I don't know. I mean he's been playing great all summer and during the grass court stuff, and I don't know. I mean he's just playing with so much confidence that I'm sure that's a big part of it.

MARDY FISH: Hopefully. You know, hopefully I won't -- this won't be my last final of a big tournament like this, and you know, I mean you never know. You never know, but I mean I kind of -- I think if I made my first one when I was 21, hopefully in a couple years -- hopefully I can keep improving, and you know, if I can keep improving, then you know, then if you improve on a final result, then there's nothing higher than a win. So who knows, you know.

MARDY FISH: I mean he served unbelievable in Washington, and he caught me -- I lost my first serve of each set. I lost my serve the first game that I served in each set against him, and so I was just playing from behind the entire time, and it wasn't one of my best matches, but I mean he played great, and there was nothing I could do, and today I don't know if he played as well as he did then, but I mean he just kind of -- he got the job done. And I tried to keep holding serve like I was trying to do all tournament and convert on my chances, and you know, he gave me a gift there in the first set, but that was all he could give me, I guess.

MARDY FISH: I don't know. I didn't know that. My backhand -- I can't win without my backhand, that's for sure, because my forehand is definitely my weakest part of my game, and it's getting better, you know, but to lose a set 7-6 to one of the best players in the world when I'm not hitting my backhand well, as you say, is pretty good for me, I guess.

MARDY FISH: Yeah. I thought he was going to go forehand like he was the entire match. And he kind of -- I mean it's probably something that I'll think about for a while. You know, he just kind of kicked them out wide. I mean he hit one kick like 120 kicker out wide, which is not a normal kick for a normal person, but you know, it's kind of what you expect from him, but I definitely wasn't looking for that.

MARDY FISH: Sure. I knew that I had to make at least the semis to get a seed. I don't know if I was guaranteed if I made the semis, but finals for sure. You know, I mean it'll definitely sink in. It'll take a little bit to get over this, but I'll be fine. I've lost matches 7-6 in the third before, as has everybody else out here, and you know, I'll get over it.

MARDY FISH: Definitely better than anybody that I've ever played, but you know, I haven't played Agassi before. And you know, you never know with him taking a couple weeks off before the U.S. Open, he could be very, very dangerous. You know, there's just so much depth. You know, one bad match and you're gone. But yeah, I mean he's definitely playing better than anybody I've ever played, that's for sure.