US OPEN

September 1, 2006

Andre Agassi

Benjamin Becker

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. Your thoughts about playing the legend?
BENJAMIN BECKER: Well, it's a dream come true. I mean, you know, I was watching the match and obviously I was kind of hoping he would win because, I mean, it's the last time you get a chance to play him. I grew up watching him play. He was an idol for me.
So, yeah, I mean, it's a chance that I'm really fortunate to experience. I hope we get a lot out of it tomorrow.

Q. Did you watch the match on TV?
BENJAMIN BECKER: I did. Yeah, I was trying to watch it in the stadium but there were no seats. I had to stand in the alley and then they kicked us out, so I went to the hotel and watched it at the hotel.

Q. Can you imagine what the atmosphere was like?
BENJAMIN BECKER: Well, yeah, I was there for a couple of games. You know, I got a little feel for it. Then on TV also, you know, you get a little feel of it. Obviously, it's a little different when you there live.
I'm trying to prepare for that because that's something I've never, never experienced.

Q. How would you feel if you were on the court in that kind of a situation?
BENJAMIN BECKER: Well, I don't know. I can tell you definitely I will be nervous tomorrow, I know that. But, you know, it's just, yeah, for me how to manage with that. I just try to manage it. I just try to, you know, still play my tennis and not get distracted by the atmosphere and all the people.

Q. Were you watching it more as a spectator or were you really scouting or did you find yourself just wrapped up in it like any fan?
BENJAMIN BECKER: Well, I mean, we were watching it as a spectator and we were scouting a little bit.
You know, I was just after a while, I was just amazed by the game because, I mean, it was an unbelievable match. It was so interesting, one of the best matches I've really seen on TV. You know, I got really into it. After a while, I was just a spectator.

Q. Were you more impressed by Agassi's tennis or tenacity?
BENJAMIN BECKER: Both actually, you know. I was really impressed with the way he played at the beginning especially, and then, you know, Baghdatis played a little better. But, I mean, the level was really, really high. I really was impressed with the way they both played and how tough they were, too. Baghdatis was cramping and still he was fighting for every ball.
I mean, whatever they did on the court, you can tell, both of them are champions. You could tell by the match they played yesterday.

Q. You say you want to play your own game. How would you describe your own game?
BENJAMIN BECKER: Well, just trying to be aggressive, you know, take control of the points. Not trying to be any different. Trying to serve big, trying to return aggressively so that, you know, I can, you know, put pressure on him a little bit, make him move instead he makes me move, what he likes to do and he does best.
So that's gonna be my game plan. Just to try to be aggressive, you know, as much as I can.

Q. Will you feel bad if you knock him out and that's the last match of his career?
BENJAMIN BECKER: I don't know it. I mean, we both are tennis players, so we both go out and try to win. Obviously, there's a little bit behind it now since, you know, it's his last tournament.
But, I mean, I don't know. I don't know. I can't really say at all. All I want to do is now go out there tomorrow and win. That's why I play tennis. That's also why I practiced and everything, to play in the atmosphere like that and in a stadium like that against a guy like that, a guy like Agassi. That's what I been looking forward to since I started playing tennis. You know, then we will see what the result is gonna be now.

Q. What is your experience with matches that go three hours and longer?
BENJAMIN BECKER: I really haven't had that many matches. I mean, I had five set in Wimbledon, which is a little different because it's on grass court. I haven't really had a five setter on hard court or any other surface than grass. As I said, it's a little different since it's more serving and returning.
So I don't know. But I feel I'm in a good shape. I had no trouble against Volandri in the first round physically. I felt really good yesterday and I feel good today. You know, physically, I feel I'm gonna be in a good shape. So I'm not worried about that.

Q. Have you ever played any Davis Cup or any sort of match where the whole stadium is against you?
BENJAMIN BECKER: Well, I played college tennis, and I had some time when maybe 200 people were cheering against me, so (smiling)...

Q. Which college would have been the big rival of Baylor?
BENJAMIN BECKER: It was Texas and Texas A&M. I remember one match we played at Texas Tech which obviously is not that big. People were standing right on the court. You could hear whatever they say to you. So they were closer to you, so you can hear even more what they say. But they only 200 people maybe. 20,000 is a little different, so I don't know yet (smiling).

Q. Andre said I don't know if you heard this Andre joked after the match about how he played B. Becker a lot.
BENJAMIN BECKER: It's funny. I grew up idolizing Andre and Boris both. I remember the matches they had when Andre still had the long hair, the Donnay racquet, orange racquet, the colorful clothes. I grew up watching Boris Becker from Germany and Andre because he was so charismatic. These two guys were my idols. Whenever I watched the tournament, I followed their results, yeah.

Q. How much do you get, do people ask you all the time if you're related to him?
BENJAMIN BECKER: Every time, you know. If I don't get that question when I play a tournament, I think something's wrong. Because, I mean, every tournament I get at least once. I always have to say no. And then people start asking me, I always before they can finish the question, I always say no, because I know what's coming.

Q. Do you ever get his mail?
BENJAMIN BECKER: No, I never talked to him. I never met him. Never talked to him. I crossed him once in Wimbledon, but he had to go to a meeting. So we were supposed to meet there, but he had a meeting, and then so I never, never talked to him.

Q. When you were little and younger you were idolizing those guys, did you ever pretend when you were playing or practicing that you were playing against Andre?
BENJAMIN BECKER: Sure, sure. I mean, for me, because my game style is a little more similar to Andre's, that's why. I mean, when I was younger, that's what we said, I'm Agassi, I'm hitting the backhands, and it's not because my game style is different, I'm not playing the game that Boris Becker did.
Sure, that's what you do when you're younger. You see those guys on TV and you just want to imitate them.

Q. How did you get started in tennis?
BENJAMIN BECKER: Well, nobody in my family plays tennis. Actually, it's a soccer family that I come from. I started playing soccer when I was three or four years old. And then by accident I just got into tennis, watching Boris Becker. But also I found a racquet in our garage and just started playing. Our neighbor, he's not a tennis coach, but he was helping out a regional tennis club just as a coach because they didn't have anybody else. We started playing in my backyard.
He once invited me to come to a tennis club. It was like a regional, you know, meeting with all the young guys could come and, you know, just play. They were scouting them. And then I got selected to play in this regional tennis center. That's how it all started.

Q. How old were you?
BENJAMIN BECKER: About seven or eight. It was seven I think when I started. Eight when I started in the first club, and then about ten when I started in the regional tennis center.

Q. What is your Bundesliga team?
BENJAMIN BECKER: Schwarz Weiss Neckarau.

Q. How did they do this year?
BENJAMIN BECKER: We went down.

Q. You live in Miami now. How much time do you spend there?
BENJAMIN BECKER: Actually, this year I haven't spent that much in Miami, only a few weeks. I practice at the university, Baylor University, most of the time since my girlfriend was still living there. I'm planning now to go to Florida more often to practice. And especially now in the winter I'm gonna plan to go there to prepare for the next year.

Q. What made you choose the college route?
BENJAMIN BECKER: Well, I was recruited only by Baylor University. That was the only school that recruited me, called me. A friend of mine decided to go to school one year before I did. I knew him from juniors. He told the coach at Baylor about me, and then they called me up.
I always wanted to go to the States. I always wanted to study and play tennis at the same time, you know, to combine it because you can't do it in Germany. That's why how it all started. That's why I decided to go to Baylor.

Q. What did you think of Waco the first time you looked around?
BENJAMIN BECKER: Funny, first time I came to America was Waco. I was a little surprised. I was expecting all the skyscrapers.
I mean, yeah, I had to get used to it. You know, it's a it was definitely different than I was used to and as I expected. But I had to get used to it.
But, you know, Baylor University was awesome. It was a great experience. It's really, really nice there and, you know, I wouldn't missed that experience now.

Q. How did you find out about the Branch Davidians massacre?
BENJAMIN BECKER: I kind of remember a little bit from the news, but I remember that when I decided to go to Baylor, some of my friends and, you know, family, they asked me where it exactly is. I said Waco. They said, "Oh, wasn't that where this happened?" That's what I knew before I get there.

Q. That made you feel great.
BENJAMIN BECKER: Yeah, yeah, comfortable.

Q. Have you ever talked to Andre before?
BENJAMIN BECKER: No, no, never. The first time I actually saw him in a closeup was in LA this year, in an LA tournament. I walked in the locker room after a quarterfinal, he was sitting there. I was really surprised. But I never talked to him or, you know, never anything.

Q. A week ago you were qualifying to play in this thing. Now you're playing Agassi. Is this a bit surreal for you?
BENJAMIN BECKER: Yeah, it's you know, I'm not really thinking or trying to think about it too much because, you know, I probably gonna realize it realize everything after when I have some time to relax and do something else and, you know, being here and playing tennis. Maybe on the plane ride back to Germany I'll probably realize everything.
I mean, yeah, it went pretty fast now. You know, it still feels like I just got to qualify. You know, obviously, was always the ultimate goal to play Agassi in this tournament, now it's gonna happen. So I'm just really excited and looking forward to it.

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