	products recent interviews FastScripts archive about ASAP Sports

Our Clients:

Browse by Sport

Find us on

Subscribe to RSS

Click to go to
Asaptext.com

View our
e-Brochure

ATP MASTER SERIES MADRID

October 22, 2006

Fernando Gonzalez

MADRID, SPAIN

Q. In the first set you gave it a good fight. And then after you disappeared a little bit. What happened.
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: It was tough. When Roger is up in the court, he's a good player. He puts on a lot of pressure.
Maybe the match was really even, maybe I had a chance at three all, it's tough. I feel I'm in my best shape, but he's a really good player.

Q. Any problem with the arm?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: I have sometimes a little pain when I play too many matches in a row. I can't serve 100 percent, but that happened during the match.

Q. Was it the best Federer you played today?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: Maybe at the end, yeah. Maybe not in the first set. The first set was really close. But after he passed over me, he didn't let me do too much. Maybe it wasn't my best day, but I couldn't do anything.

Q. Anyway, you had a great week. It's profitable for you.
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: Yeah, it is. If you don't win, you're not happy. It was a good week. Last week I did well. I played good tennis. Now I'm tired. But two weeks in a row is tough especially when you have to change places and the condition is really different between each week. It's been a good week. I was a little bit lucky in the beginning. I won two really close matches. Yesterday I played great tennis.

Q. Are you going to play next week?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: I hope so.

Q. You're not sure?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: If I have to play tomorrow, I don't think so. If it is Wednesday maybe, I will see. Two weeks on the road playing from the beginning to the end, it's tough. You have to think about it. But I am going to go there anyway, and I will see.

Q. Fernando, you obviously want to get closer to winning big titles. Do you feel this week has brought you closer to doing that?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: Sorry?

Q. You obviously want to win big titles, do you feel that the whole week has brought you closer to winning big titles?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: Yeah. My tennis is getting better and better. I feel that I can still improve it. That's given me a lot of motivation to continue working. I'm fighting to go to the Masters now. And I didn't play in the first four months I was playing terrible. I didn't win any match. And then I started to play better and better. And now I feel that I can play good every week, everywhere.

Q. Does it bring Shanghai closer for you?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: It is. It's close. I have to keep winning. The other guys, they're going to play, but I think everything is going to be decided in Paris.
(Questions in Spanish.)

Q. Congratulations, Fernando. Including this match, although you were finally subdued, do you think you saw yourself -- you got stressed because of that ball you lost, the tie break, the 40-love?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: No. The match cannot be decided by one point. He makes you lose a couple of points, and you have it tough. It's difficult.

Q. What about his injury in his ankle? Did you change your techniques then when you saw he was a bit sore?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: No. I played my best. I played my game, and that made me feel more comfortable. I had a couple of errors, and he played great.
When Federer is on top, it's difficult to reach him.

Q. Do you need to play a qualifier like Murray. Are you going to go to Basel or not?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: Yes. Today or tomorrow I wouldn't go. I think I play on Wednesday. But I'm going to make my best to play here.

Q. The push to make it to Shanghai, the year is very long in tennis years, do you need to make extra effort at the end?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: This is a motivation I have, a last one. It keeps me alive and keeps me playing. My year has not been that long. My year started at the beginning of the year, but I played poor tennis. Then I started playing well in April or so. So I'm fine now.

Q. You proved to be on a high level for quarter finals U.S. Open, grass, Wimbledon. Do you see yourself a winner of a Grand Slam, or are Nadal and Federer going to take them all?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: It's tough because Federer is on top of everyone, but they also have their bad days, so one can also win. Winning a Grand Slam is one of the things I want most.

Q. What do you feel on the court when you have someone like Federer in front of you? Is it your feeling that you can not beat him?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: In the beginning you feel equal until 6-5, for instance, when we were even, then he won the set. And then he's superior, and then it's difficult to defeat him.

Q. If you played this way, would you have obtained the results you're obtaining right now from the beginning of the year?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: It's impossible to know. With the prior coach it didn't work so good. Now with Larry it works a bit better. I've improved in many things. It's always good to have another point of view about tennis.

End of FastScripts...

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297