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WIMBLEDON

June 27, 2009

Radek Stepanek

LONDON, ENGLAND

R. STEPANEK/D. Ferrer
7-5, 7-5, 3-6, 4-6, 6-4

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please, for Radek Stepanek.

Q. We thought you were going to retire, but you managed to get on.
RADEK STEPANEK: Yeah, it didn't only look dramatic, it was dramatic, because I had the problem with my knee already in Madrid this year, before Paris, and I didn't play for nine or ten days before Roland Garros. I was able to play there. Made two rounds, you know.
After Roland Garros, I twist my ankle, two days after the match when I played a challenger tournament in Prostejov. So I started to practice already three or four days here before Wimbledon. Today at 6-5 it was I think on the breakpoint, when I had a breakpoint, David served a double-fault, and I was just hitting the ball back. When I hit the ball, I felt in the knee something is wrong.
But I went to the chair, came back to serve, and already the first serve, my knee didn't respond with me, just broke down. When I tried to serve at 15-All, I couldn't even stand on the leg, so I had to stop and call the physio. It happened to me already I think twice, so I knew where the problem is.
There was only the question if they gonna tape my knee and, you know, it's gonna -- the pain's gonna go away or not. I gave myself, you know, if I'm gonna finish the set, the whole set with the pain, then I'm gonna retire. But slowly the pain was leaving. I was able to play with the tape. It was actually very uncomfortable, but, you know, I was able to play. And that was for me the most important thing. And I was trying to do most of it.

Q. How confident are you you'll be okay for your next match?
RADEK STEPANEK: Hopefully, yes. I just called my doctor, if he can show up tonight right away and try to help me out, you know, to get ready for my match. I believe he can help me out, and I'll be ready to battle again.

Q. Where is your doctor coming from?
RADEK STEPANEK: From Prague.

Q. How do you feel about Lleyton Hewitt as an opponent?
RADEK STEPANEK: I think Lleyton is playing great tennis right now, especially here in Wimbledon. He won it here, so definitely he's got his best experiences.
It's gonna be a tough match. He's a great returner. He's passing great. So it will be an exciting match.

Q. Is he particularly difficult if you're not fully fit?
RADEK STEPANEK: Yeah, definitely. If you're not hundred percent fit, then he's gonna make you run like a horse. So I rather try to do everything possible to be hundred percent ready for the match.

Q. Most of the players play with racquets from the major manufacturers. You play with a different racquet. Could you tell us about that and why?
RADEK STEPANEK: Yeah, I think, you know, a lot of players aren't playing with the Bosworth racquet. A lot of players also in the past, you know, they also customized the racquets.
So many of the top players in the world been customized by Bosworth and they try to produce their own racquet.
You know, last year, before the season started, before the off-season, I got the racquet from my coach, Petr Korda and Ivan Lendl, who is playing with the racquet right now, just to try it, just to see if maybe I'm fine with it. And, you know, I felt great with the racquet, and the service are producing is incredibly professional. Everything what I need to change it's done immediately. I feel great with the racquet, you know.
I'm not playing tennis just because how the racquet looks, but how it feels. That's the most important thing for me.

Q. What is the key element that they've customized for you?
RADEK STEPANEK: You know, I already changed it three times this year. I started with one racquet in Australia, then I took for indoors a lighter one, because the tennis is much faster and I needed to be faster with my hands. So that's why I change it.
And now when I played on the clay, then it was again too light. Then we gain some weight. So we are working with the racquet all the time. And that's the great advantage to work with them because they are professional. They've been in the tennis for so many years.
You know, the knowledge about the racquet is huge from them. I'm very happy and honored that I can be part of it.

Q. You and Tomas are doing very well in this tournament. Does this give you a lot of confidence for the next Davis Cup tie?
RADEK STEPANEK: Yeah, definitely. You know, we are definitely both, I believe, focused on what we are doing here in Wimbledon. But definitely once this is over, next thing for us is the Davis Cup where we definitely want to do everything possible to go to semis.

Q. Did you expect to get to the fourth round taking into account your knee problem?
RADEK STEPANEK: You know, my knee problem happened just during today's match, so it didn't bother me before the tournament. I had a problem with my twisted ankle. I'm very happy that I'm in the fourth round.
You know, getting to the second week of Wimbledon is always a nice thing. I'm gonna do everything possible to win another match.

Q. What is the problem? You say the knee gave way. Something you didn't suffer before. It's a pain?
RADEK STEPANEK: It's a pain only when I'm serving. When I toss the ball and I have to put all my weight on the left leg and hold it for a little bit, then the knee just switch off and I don't have the power in it. The leg looks like I'm not controlling it. So that was the problem.
But since it got taped, it got tightened up, then it didn't -- I'm not a doctor, but just figuring out that once it's tighten up, then the knee is not moving that much maybe. The pain was going slowly away. But it took three, four games when I was not hundred percent.

Q. If you win this tennis tournament, will you do the worm for us?
RADEK STEPANEK: Definitely.

End of FastScripts

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