TMS - MONTE-CARLO

GUILLERMO CORIA: (Through translation.) Yes, it was difficult because I was down 6-1, 5-1, and I had four or five matchpoints against me. I was serving very bad during that match. It was terrible.

But I'm very pleased with the way I came out of it.

Q. Did you think you could win from 6-1, 5-1?

GUILLERMO CORIA: (Through translation.) No, he was playing with a lot of confidence. He had played very well against Safin the day before, and I was two breaks down so I thought it would be very difficult. Also in the tiebreaker, I was 4-6 down.

But when I finally managed to win this second set, then I thought I could win. I believe the end of the match was a lot of fun.

Q. What was the matter with your serve? You had many double-faults.

GUILLERMO CORIA: (Through translation.) Yes, I was nervous and I was lacking confidence. Then at the end of the match I was serving better. But I know I must serve better, especially if I play against Kiefer.

Q. Now, having come back from that, do you think you can win the tournament?

GUILLERMO CORIA: (Through translation.) It's going to be difficult because if I win against Kiefer, then it will be Nadal.

But if I win, it will be my fourth time in the quarterfinals in a row, so that's very good.

Q. When you are trailing as far behind as you were, what gives you the strength to keep going? It would be easy to say, "I can't win, I'll stop."

GUILLERMO CORIA: (Through translation.) It was an incredible match. My serve was not working at all; it was awful. Therefore, I knew I had to do something else, and I continued to run and work very hard for each point. I didn't want to leave this tournament losing 6-1, 5-1 and giving that kind of image of myself here. Therefore, I gathered more strength because I like this tournament. I think the people here are so nice and so respectful towards you.

So I accepted the fact that I was making double-faults and that my serve wasn't working. It's difficult to play when one shot is not working at all, so this gave me a lot of strength to continue fighting and struggling, and I was able to raise my game in the third set.

Q. Paul-Henri Mathieu is a player, it's not the first time he wasted a big lead like that. When you were 6-1, 5-1 down, were you aware he is a player that has had trouble closing out matches before, and did that give you confidence?

GUILLERMO CORIA: (Through translation.) No, I didn't think that, because each match is different from the others. Also, he came into the match playing very well, and I was playing very badly, especially with my serve, as I said.

But when I was able to raise my level of game, then the match became more balanced. I was not thinking about him at all. I was just concerned with my own game, and I knew that if I was able to play better, then I could win.

Q. When did you start having problems with your serve? Which part of the season?

GUILLERMO CORIA: (Through translation.) It's been several months I had this problem, although I played today many double-faults that I didn't do in the last month.

But I'm very pleased that I was able to win that match with one shot going so poorly. It was very important to win that match.

Now I feel relaxed, and I hope I won't make so many double-faults against Kiefer.

Q. What was the reason for switching coaches, and why especially do you think that Higueras is someone who can take your career to the next level?

GUILLERMO CORIA: (Through translation.) I hired him especially because I want to go to a higher level. We are starting to work together, and we are going through a period where we are getting to know each other now. We will work together until Wimbledon, and then after that we will see if we are continuing together or not. I would like it very much because he's a person who's had very good results as a player but also as a coach. He has a lot of experience. He's someone very simple, very calm. Precisely when I was playing bad, he remained very relaxed, very calm, and he told me to relax and think about what I had to do. So this helped me a lot, although I was playing bad, to keep calm and continue to play.

Q. And is it right that you have moved to California?

GUILLERMO CORIA: Yeah.

Q. You have moved to California?

GUILLERMO CORIA: Yeah.

Q. You have a home in Rancho Mirage or something like that?

GUILLERMO CORIA: Palm Springs.

Q. Palm Springs, nice.

GUILLERMO CORIA: Yes (smiling). (Speaking in Spanish.)

THE INTERPRETER: He prefers Venado Tuerto.

Q. Is winning the French Open a goal for this season?

GUILLERMO CORIA: (Through translation.) It would be nice, but for the time being I am thinking about Monte-Carlo and winning Monte-Carlo. After, I'll think about the next tournaments. And when I'll get to the French Open, then I will think about the French Open and I will try everything I can to win it.