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WIMBLEDON

June 26, 2008

Ernests Gulbis

LONDON, ENGLAND

R. NADAL/E. Gulbis
5-7, 6-2, 7-6, 6-3

Q. When you go off on one of these streaks like you started today where you're like playing on another planet someplace, do you ever get the feeling that it can't last forever, that at some point I can't keep playing this well?
ERNESTS GULBIS: I started the match really well, as you could see, first set. I was serving really well; that was the key to the first set. I saw the statistics; I served more than 70 percent first serve, so that's what I didn't do for a long time.
Yeah, I knew that it can't last the whole match that I'm going to serve over 70 percent my first serve. But you know, Nadal is such a player that he also adjusts a lot. He started to return better, he started to guess more where I'm going to serve. That was the key point. And from baseline, he's, I think, the best player from baseline.
But still, I think I just lost a little bit of concentration in the second set, and that was the moment, if I would take maybe the break when I had Love-30 the second game, maybe it would be different. But overall, yeah, I played the whole match pretty good, I think.

Q. Your vibration dampener, the yin-yang, what's the story behind that?
ERNESTS GULBIS: Nothing, just --

Q. Is it your personality maybe?
ERNESTS GULBIS: No, I don't think so. It's just my coach had this vibrator and I'm using it. I like it. It's my lucky one. But not a big story behind it.

Q. There are two parts to Ernest Gulbis, tremendous power and great hands, great touch, and you showed it today with all the drop shots you hit.
ERNESTS GULBIS: Yeah, you know, power, I need it to play like this. I couldn't go every time long rallies with Rafael; otherwise I would be really tired by the third set already. So I was trying to shorten it up a little bit. So that's why I played aggressive. I mean, yeah, that's the way I play. I don't know how to explain.

Q. Why did you lose your concentration in the second set?
ERNESTS GULBIS: Not that I lost my concentration a lot. I was thinking that now it's important to take the second set, in the beginning to be concentrated and focused.
But he changed a little bit his game. I don't know if you could see it from the side, but I had a feeling a little bit. He started to return better, and I didn't serve so well in the beginning. So that was the part which decided it. Because if I would take second set, two sets love, anything could happen. But he took second set pretty easy, and third set he was in a better place to be.

Q. On your second serves, he began to back up like he was playing clay court tennis a little bit, just get the second serve back in play. Was that the tactical change you think he made that helped him out?
ERNESTS GULBIS: I didn't realize it, actually. It's good that you tell me. But I think that what I could do better was to go in more, to go volley more. That was the part which I didn't do good today, the only part, because from baseline I was feeling the ball really well. Returning, also, okay, as much as he let me to return.
But the part was maybe I should to serve and volley sometimes more against him, especially on important points, because he was just pushing it back. He was just slicing long if I would go volley.
But that's the part of my game which I still need to work on a lot because to be honest, I don't feel very confident in my volley. I feel much better than I did half a year ago. But still, it's a lot of room to improve, especially in volleys. So I think if I'm going to put that thing into my game, I think I will be more dangerous player.

Q. What did Nicky say to you after this match?
ERNESTS GULBIS: I haven't met him yet. I went to go shower and now here.

Q. You haven't seen him yet?
ERNESTS GULBIS: No.

Q. Many players don't bother practicing drop shots. They just think, well, you just touch the ball. Do you practice drop shots?
ERNESTS GULBIS: No, not at all.

Q. They're just natural for you?
ERNESTS GULBIS: They're just natural. It's the ball feeling, which you have. It hasn't always worked for me. You know, I had matches where I played terrible drop shots, and I stopped after half a set.
But on grass court it's much tougher than on clay court to play drop shots. In Paris I played a lot more drop shots. Here, not so much. But against Nadal, it's tough to make some of those drop shots.

Q. You not only hit the shots well, but after you hit the drop shots you positioned yourself well assuming he would get to the ball.
ERNESTS GULBIS: Actually I don't think so, because I think I positioned myself pretty bad after drop shots.

Q. Really?
ERNESTS GULBIS: I think so, because --

Q. Because you won about eight drop shot points today.
ERNESTS GULBIS: But that's also part of my game which I should be better in to my point of view, because I usually think I play the drop shot and that's it, that I won a point. But not always it's like this.
Okay, today it was a few lucky points actually when I made the drop shots, when he played right on me or something. I don't really remember so well.

Q. One off the net, too.
ERNESTS GULBIS: Yeah.

Q. You played Djokovic at Roland Garros and you played today in Wimbledon. Which was the more difficult?
ERNESTS GULBIS: Today was much more difficult. Okay, I lost to Djokovic three sets, now in four sets, but I think I played better today than I did against Djokovic. The conditions were better today for my game than they were then because it was wet and slow.
But I think that Nadal is a tougher opponent for me to play, because he's hitting with so much spin and with -- when I warmed up with him, because it was the first time in my life I played against him, I was surprised because he's hitting really strong and a lot of spin. I thought that I'm in trouble.
But I could adjust my game, because when I played Novak, I was more or less in control of the points. You know, I did a lot more unforced errors, but I could do a lot more from his game because he's not putting so much pressure on me with his game. Nadal is putting a lot of pressure to anybody, so that's why he's No. 2 and he has a good chance to be even higher.

Q. But today you weren't very far from him, so that's a good sign?
ERNESTS GULBIS: Yeah, that's why I'm happy, because it was -- it's really a great experience for me. I'm really happy that I could play more or less in the same level. On important points he was better than me, but I'm really happy that I saw that I can compete with the top players. So that's for me the most important thing right now, to be confident.

Q. And it was a bad draw for you, playing Nadal in the second round?
ERNESTS GULBIS: I don't think it was a bad drew. I'm happy I played him in the second round. Why not? I'm really happy to get any kind of experience that I can get from these matches. I would be happy to play Roger in my first, second round. It's not a time that I'm disappointed I played against him. I'm really happy about it.

Q. We all think that the tiebreaker in the third was the turning point of the match. We all think. I don't know if you agree, because after the tiebreaker almost everybody thought that the match was falling on Nadal's side. If you were to single out some point or crack some point, the main point of Nadal's game, what point or what skill can you point to?
ERNESTS GULBIS: Sorry, I didn't understand. Which is his weakest spot?

Q. No, stronger, or main spot maybe.
ERNESTS GULBIS: The way I played today, I wasn't -- I didn't try to play too much in his backhand because everybody when they play against him, they try to play more on his backhand, but that's not really -- I think that's not really the right way to play him, because when you're hitting backhand he doesn't miss and he goes around with his forehand, and then he kills you.
I tried to play more on his forehand side, to get him out of the backhand corner, so that was more or less my tactic today. That's basically it.

Q. But if you were to -- what's the main thing in Nadal's game that appeals to you or that kills you?
ERNESTS GULBIS: The way he's playing. You know, you can see the way he's playing. I don't know which is his weak spot, actually, like a big one. Maybe it's volleys, but he's not going so much volleys. I think that he didn't serve so well today, actually, because he missed a lot more first serves than -- I was pretty surprised.
But of course when he's in the rally with you and then he's playing really good behind your body. When he hits on my forehand, I hit forehand, and then I run to middle and then he hits again in the same corner, so you are -- that's, I think, his best thing that he does.

Q. Did you think that if the tiebreaker would have fallen into your hand then the match could have been yours?
ERNESTS GULBIS: If I would win tiebreaker it would have been different fourth set. But it's always difficult to say which point was the deciding one in the match.
Of course it was -- I think also important point was second set when I had 1-0 up, the beginning of the set, Love-30. If I would take that game 2-0, you know, my serve, I could make 3-0, for example, it would be a different game. It's a difference of one game, you know?
Okay, second set was a little bit bad for me, but third set was close. And on tiebreaker he just showed that he can play important points the way he can play them, without mistakes, and that's it.

Q. Who is the most popular sportsman in the history of your country? You don't know?
ERNESTS GULBIS: To be honest, people are really happy for any sport which is good because we don't have so many top athletes to choose from. I know, for example, in Austrian tennis, they have three guys who are top hundred, and the people, they are not really popular. Because for example, they a player who was No. 1, and now they have three guys who are really good, and they are not so popular.
In Latvia it's different because they really appreciate when somebody makes it to the top level in sports. I don't know who is more popular.

Q. Maybe you?
ERNESTS GULBIS: Maybe me, but I don't know if I am most popular. Of course tennis gets more popular in Latvia; that's for sure. But to be most popular, it's not what I can say.

Q. But before you in the history, say 10, 15 years ago, was there ever one famous Latvian athlete, very, very famous in any sport?
ERNESTS GULBIS: You mean --

Q. Basketball player, soccer player from Latvia ten years ago, five years ago?
ERNESTS GULBIS: I can't say just one. Every time in Latvia it was popular hockey, basketball, football, and Latvians are really big fans of hockey. When it's the world championship, all of the players on the team are really popular for that time. It's like periods of time. If it's a hockey championship, then they are popular. It's like this.
It's tough to say who is the most popular. It's not a goal that somebody has to be popular.

Q. No one has won some Olympic medals?
ERNESTS GULBIS: Of course there were some Olympic champions, but that's also -- that's like, that period of time, he's the most popular.

Q. Where are you going next? Which are your main goals this year? Where do you expect to get?
ERNESTS GULBIS: You mean -- I don't have a goal to be in a certain position in the rankings. I have a goal to play better and better throughout the season because the beginning of this season was unlucky for me. I had some injuries and some problems.
But now I think I'm on the right way. I played better and better every month. I'm going to play Bastad now and Sweden. I'm going back on clay for one tournament. And then it's starting in the Masters Series, Toronto and Cincinnati and Hartford.

Q. Olympic games?
ERNESTS GULBIS: Probably Olympic games.

Q. Who will carry the flag for your national team?
ERNESTS GULBIS: No idea, no.

End of FastScripts

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