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NASDAQ-100 OPENMarch 25, 2006Tim HenmanMIAMI, FLORIDA THE MODERATOR: Questions, please. Q. First set never in doubt? TIM HENMAN: Never in doubt (smiling). Yeah, it was getting pretty tough at the end -- from one end and at the end. But, you know, it was just clear in my mind that I had the right tactic and I had to, you know, keep doing that, keep executing it. Because when I did, you know, I was giving myself a lot of opportunities that I was taking. You know, it was very difficult from the, I guess, far end, when you're with the sun like that and there's a, you know, strong breeze coming down the court. That's when any shot that, you know, is not hit properly, executed, then if it finds the middle of the court it just sits there and you're really going to be on the back foot. You know, there were a couple of times in the second set where I did a really good job of hitting the spot on the serve and then opening up the opportunity for a ground stroke to get to the net because I think that was still going to be the right tactic for me from that end. As I said, it's easy to open up the opponent. But, no, all in all, it was a good one to finally win. Q. You've never tried those tactics before against him? TIM HENMAN: Not quite like that, no. You know, it's difficult because that is not playing to my strength and all the things that I've worked on with Paul for such a long time, it's going away from that. But I'm still playing with conviction, and that's the most important thing. There's got to be a purpose. But, you know, I had to be a lot more patient, obviously a lot more selective, when I came forward, and the backhand down the line I think is an important shot against him. So whenever I played, whatever style, as long as I had that conviction and a purpose, then I'm fine because I think, you know, with the way I've played on clay over the years, I've got a lot more confidence in my baseline game. But it's still difficult for me, and there are still times where I just see a second serve and I say, "I'm coming in here," and then I have to sort of say, "Maybe not." You know, if I'm hitting the ball well from the baseline, let's see if we can open up an opportunity, and I did it well. Q. Do you feel like he lacked his usual fire, or do you feel like you kind of took that away from him? TIM HENMAN: Well, it's a combination of the two. He's struggling a little bit with his game right now. The eight previous times I've seen that fire because I've been at the net giving him a target, serving and volleying, and he's the, as my record states, the most difficult for me to play if I'm attacking and coming forward all the time because he's so good at returning and then picking off the passing shots. It was good that I felt much more comfortable with it -- a different style today, and, obviously, you know, to get the result is a huge boost. Q. We heard two "C'mons". Slightly tongue in cheek? TIM HENMAN: No, no, I should have grunt out of that. I did sort of think about that, It was 2-Love in the third, in the second set, where I'm 2-Love, 30-Love, played a couple of great games and I'm really beginning to put some nails in the coffin, then all of a sudden he hits one kind of -- he hit a good pass but I was still there for the volley with a net cord. He hits a net cord that just didn't come through at all. All of a sudden I'm down breakpoint. From that end I shouldn't be losing my serve. So, yeah, it was -- I did kind of think that as I said it, but, you know, I've had my fair share of those so I wasn't -- I'm sure he's not going to lose any sleep over it. Q. As those five set points disappeared, one after the other, what were you thinking? TIM HENMAN: Yeah, I was aware that I didn't make -- I think I made only one first serve. But, again, I don't think my conviction and my execution was as good as it could have been. You look at the way I was playing the deuce point, I was playing that well. You know, for sure there's a little added anxiety and, you know, I had one of the points a good first serve, good forehand into his forehand corner, and I've opened up the court well. But I was already at the net before I'd even hit the approach shot, so I think the, you know, important aspect of that was that I was still, you know, clear in my mind I wasn't going to start to get frustrated now. Because I was in a tight match, and I was the one that had been dictating and dominating. In a lot of the other previous matches, that hasn't been the case. So things were still pretty positive in my eyes. Q. Having said that 0-9 is not much different from 0-8, how does 1-8 feel? TIM HENMAN: Tight. We're really tight now, the record (laughing). We're close. Head-to-head, when we look back at our careers, it will have been a lot of close matches. Q. In terms of finally getting over that? TIM HENMAN: Not much difference but pretty satisfying? Q. But getting over that. Even though as you say, you may be not quite where you would want. TIM HENMAN: Yeah, as you say, as in so many of these situations in tennis and in sport, you know, it's what goes on between the ears. It's tough in a situation and matchup where you don't feel comfortable, but, you know, you've got to be strong. The first set, the end of the first set, the breaker was a perfect example. I was just very in control of the way that I was trying to play each point, and, you know, that's the satisfying aspect. I played a good match. I played -- I think my match against Safin was much cleaner and of probably a higher quality, but different conditions against a different opponent. You know, this is more satisfying. Q. He said you're a great player in practice but haven't converted it to matches. Now that you're older, he thinks more relaxed, you'll be able to convert? TIM HENMAN: Yeah, it is. Definitely against him, Indian Wells was a classic example. As I said to you guys, we practiced last week and I was playing fantastically well, and it was great to be able to play against him in whatever environment, whether it was practice or not, and just to be able to play a style of play where I really was able to open him up. It was the last, when I spoke to Paul this morning, he said you've seen the tactic that works, but don't expect it just to happen. And if it doesn't, if you get off to a good start, then great, keep doing those things that work. He said if it doesn't, you keep working at it. He said if you can keep playing it point by point, you'll get your opportunities. That's exactly the way it was. Q. When was that practice session? Was it after Berdych? TIM HENMAN: It was Friday, yeah, yeah. I think it was the Friday of, you know, the quarters or right towards the end. Q. You were both out of the tournament by then? TIM HENMAN: Yeah, yeah, yeah. We had a good, you know, couple of hours and, you know, it was, again, slightly different conditions, but I think it was an important -- you know, practice doesn't mean a great deal, it means very little. But I think in the circumstances, against someone like, you know, Hewitt who I hadn't beaten, it was a lot more important than some of the others. Q. Did he or his coach mention the fact you were trying something a little different? TIM HENMAN: No, not really. I mean... Q. His coach has never sort of shyed away from coming forward. TIM HENMAN: No, he asked me just as we were warming up, because of you guys' acknowledgments of our British ranking, he did say, "So who are we practicing? Are you the British No. 5 at the moment"? So I said, "Hanging in at No. 3 and proud of it." But, yeah, he's not shy in coming forward. But he was the first to come up to me and say "well done". Q. Can you envision using the tactics you used today against others? TIM HENMAN: Absolutely. If it's the right tactic. That's what I say, I don't think it's my greatest strength, but it's the right way for me to play against Hewitt. If I play that way against Safin, you know, I'd be lucky to get 3 and 3 because of the power that he has. So it's, again, all about having the conviction to your game plan. You know, I still would like to think that the majority of my matches I'm going to be the one that can look to get forward and chip and charge and be aggressive, because that's the way that I feel more comfortable and I think I'm better at it. But you know what, it's great to beat a player of Hewitt's caliber playing a different kind of style. Q. Can I ask you about your ranking. You said it doesn't give you any concern at all. TIM HENMAN: Yeah. Q. When you look to places like Rome and Hamburg and what might... TIM HENMAN: Be pretty happy not to get into Hamburg (smiling). Sorry, I shouldn't have said that. I said sorry, I probably shouldn't have said that. It was a joke. You know what, yeah, look, I'd much rather be where I think I belong and, you know, performances like that just reinstate it in my mind. Is my ranking probably going to go down further, yeah, it might do, but it isn't the be all and end all at this stage of my career. And, I feel like I'm backing it up with performances where if I know I keep doing that, then... Q. Absolutely. But what is it like for a player that's been No. 4 in the world to be faced with -- are you going to go and play qualifying? TIM HENMAN: Probably not. Q. No? TIM HENMAN: Probably not, no. I mean, will I get into Rome? I don't know. I don't know when it is, the entry, or anything. Q. You've never been a great asker of wildcards over the years. TIM HENMAN: No, maybe I could -- maybe I'll ask for a wildcard, whether I get it or not. But, you know, I'll just see. When I get my opportunities, you know, in tournaments, I think I'm ready to take them and that's the bottom line, you know. It doesn't matter if you're, you know, ranked in the top 10 but you're playing poorly and not putting in the performances, your results are going to suffer. Whether I'm ranked 75 or 25 or whatever, I'm playing good tennis. That's the most important thing. It's going to be a long year. There's going to be a lot of, hopefully fingers crossed if I stay healthy, tennis ahead of me. Like I said, if I'm playing like this, I don't have any doubts. Q. I just wanted to know about the qualifying situation. TIM HENMAN: Yeah, I'm aware of that. I'm not the first guy for it to happen to, and, you know, if I don't get into a couple of tournaments, then maybe I would play a couple of extra tournaments. Maybe I'd play the week before the French or, you know, maybe play a slightly different schedule in the States. But, you know, cross that bridge when we come to it. Q. When you came here, obviously looked at the draw, did you think, "Shit, I could have done with..." TIM HENMAN: Obviously, it's not ideal, is it, to play Safin, to play Hewitt. I suppose having come through that, I feel like I should be in like the semis or the final. But, yeah, you know, as you can see in my demeanor on the court, I think, it's not -- I would like to think that I'm not sending out signals of there's a great deal of panic right now, because I'm healthy. That's the most important thing. I'm enjoying what I'm doing and I'm playing well. As I've shown throughout my whole career, you know, if I'm playing well and doing the right things, then all these other exterior issues will take care of themselves. It's no different. But it's obviously at a different stage, I'm a different age, and my ranking is somewhere where I'm not accustomed to it but I'm going to work hard, continue to work hard, to get back up to where I think I belong. Q. Do you feel over the past four or five years the court surfaces were made to be slower? Do you feel that hurts a player? TIM HENMAN: No question. No question. But that's the challenge. You know, the speed of the courts, the speed of the balls are so, so different. But it still doesn't mean that I can't be effective. And it's given me an opportunity to develop other aspects of my game. Q. Do you feel it's fair? It's a conspiracy? TIM HENMAN: I think it's just something we have to be aware of because I think you look at the way, the styles of play, everybody plays the same. And you look at someone like Agassi and you look at the way that he, his technique and timing and the way that he was able to dictate even when the conditions were quicker and the balls were lighter, and you look at him and say, "That's phenomenal." He was the only guy that was able to do that. Now, you look at the way the surface is and the balls have changed and the way that I think string technology plays a big part in it, you know, there are plenty of guys that will stand and hit the ball as hard as they can and not look like missing. That's just the evolution of the game. Q. Obviously, a win like this is enjoyable. How important a result is this for you? TIM HENMAN: Yeah, I mean, one win doesn't normally mean a great deal, but I think in the circumstances, having never beaten Lleyton, and obviously, as we talked about, you know, my ranking has suffered having not really been able to play the way I would like, I think it definitely means more than most, more than a lot of other just individual wins. So, yeah, I'm feeling very good, very good about it. Q. Could I ask you about the challenges. I know you haven't got one right yet, but is the fact that, you know (laughter)... TIM HENMAN: There's certainly a hope, yeah (smiling). Q. Is the fact that you know for certain that you haven't had a bad call -- TIM HENMAN: I think a lot of them, you know, when we're looking at the ball and you're in the middle of a match, you definitely look at some and hope it's out. There's some tight ones. What is accurate, 3 to 4 millimeters? You're hoping those 3 to 4 millimeters might go in your favor. Also, you know, at the end of the first set, I think I challenged one on a deuce point on a serve and, you know, there's, again -- I haven't used one, so I might as well try it. So I haven't been surprised yet, put it that way, by any of my challenges (smiling). I think there's an element of hope. Q. The first one was minuscule. TIM HENMAN: Yeah, yeah, yeah. Q. The point is, having seen it, you then go on. TIM HENMAN: Yeah, I think it's fantastic. You know, I've definitely been able to bitch and moan about calls for a good couple of games. If there is an instance where you're uncertain, you ask the question and are proved wrong, you look like a bit of an idiot, but you certainly move on and you don't dwell on it. I think that will help a lot of players. I also think, you know, it's a great concept. The crowd, they're shouting, "Challenge it, challenge it," but I think they've got to milk it a bit more on the big screen. I think, yeah, you've got to pause a little bit. In the cricket, when they've got a run out or something, the thing comes spinning, you're waiting. I think it's good. Q. You wouldn't mind it? TIM HENMAN: I don't want it taking a minute between first and second serves. But it comes up so quickly, you see the ball go and then it's immediately in or out. I think we could make more of it, because I think it's -- the fans, I think, are really, really enjoying it. Q. It's clear that with this technology, everyone's convinced the technology is extremely accurate. TIM HENMAN: Extremely accurate, yeah. Q. If they chose every single call that was within 3 centimeters of the line, could be perfect and it wouldn't need a challenge. For example -- TIM HENMAN: I don't think we need to go to that extent. Q. Okay. That's the philosophical question I'm asking you. If you could have it absolutely perfect by having the guy in the booth immediately tell the chair umpire the ball is in or out, do away with the challenges... TIM HENMAN: Yeah, I'm not in favor of that. Q. So even though you know that once the challenges are out, it's no longer necessarily a perfect system. TIM HENMAN: Yeah, yeah, sure, but I think that would sort of create a very sterile environment. I think the human element is good. I think sometimes, you know, people want the players to look a bit silly when they challenge and call and get it wrong. Likewise, there are times when we like to turn around to the line judges and say, "I was right that time." I think that's important. If there was, you know, just an umpire in the chair calling the score and there were no line judges around and just ball kids, I don't think that's to the benefit of the game. I think with, certainly, two challenges, yeah, a couple of times first game you're down 40-Love, it's a tight call, are you going to challenge it? No, you're probably going to save it up to the end when it might be a really important point. Q. John McEnroe had an interesting idea. He wanted one challenge and if you got the second one wrong, you lose a point. Get the third one wrong, you lose a game. TIM HENMAN: No, that's rubbish. Q. What do you think? TIM HENMAN: Rubbish. He should stick to doubles (laughter).
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