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ROGERS CUP

August 11, 2009

Andy Murray

MONTREAL, QUEBEC

A. MURRAY/J. Chardy
6-4, 6-2

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. Ideal start for you?
ANDY MURRAY: It was good. I mean, he's a very good player. I mean, seeing the shots he hit, he has a big serve and, you know, plays very, very aggressively, so I knew going into the match I was going to have to play solid and make sure I took my opportunities, because once he gets on a roll on a serve he's tough to break down.
Yeah, I started well and, you know, every time I was in a tough situation, I came up with some big serves and some big shots. That was the difference.

Q. Is that the sort of match you wanted as your first match back at the beginning of the long haul into the US Open?
ANDY MURRAY: Yeah, it wasn't -- there were a lot of tough moments. I saw 10, 11 break points. You know, that's always good when you come back. Normally that's the first thing that kind of you lose a little bit. You might hit the ball well, but when the big points come, since you haven't played a match, you might make some mistakes, might not make as many first serves as I did today.
That was the thing I was most pleased with, was in the tight moments I came up with some big shots.

Q. Making big shots, is that...
ANDY MURRAY: Now I'm sure I feel better, now I've just got through the first one, because you just lose your rhythm a bit. I mean, I played a lot of tennis over the summer.
You know, I didn't really have more than sort of six, seven days off, you know, without playing a match for -- it's been a long, long time. I've been doing well in most of the tournaments, and, yeah, it feels a bit different.
Once you get into the match and you play the tight points, you get used to it quickly.

Q. How much was the character of the match determined by the fact that you made breaks at the start of both those two sets, how the whole thing shaped after that?
ANDY MURRAY: Well, it was obviously great to get off to a good start and break early in the sets. That always makes a difference.
But, you know, the sets got tight. I mean, I had chances to break him early or to go up a double break in both sets, you know, and didn't take them and then he had his opportunities and wasn't able to take them. You know, those breaks were important at the start, because against a guy like him he's very streaky and plays well when he's ahead. It's good to get off to a good start.

Q. A lot of people think you're a clever player. Even Chardy says that about your tactics and that you are a smart player. Do you really think you are or is that naturally the way you play?
ANDY MURRAY: Um, yeah, I think that it's something that I kind of learned to do sort of over time when I was growing up. I watched a lot of tennis when I was younger to, I guess, just see weaknesses in opponents or see how I would play against them, you know, if I got to this sort of level.
When I was in Barcelona, I trained a lot with guys that were much older than me and a lot stronger, and it wasn't like I could just, you know, overpower them. So I had to find different ways of winning points.
My natural game is to mix the pace up and change it and slice and whatnot. That's the way that I play. You know, I just try and have tactics for every match, like I'm sure every other player does, but mine are a maybe a bit more effective because I have quite a lot of variety in my shots.

Q. Do you think some guys are more macho and think the only way you can win is play aggressively with lots of power and stuff?
ANDY MURRAY: Well, I mean, a lot of the guys -- the way that tennis has gone the last, I don't know, sort of eight, nine years, guys have started to hit the ball bigger and harder, and sort of the game was based on a big serve or a big forehand.
Quite a few guys were coming to net, and that's just kind of how tennis went a little bit. You can still win playing different ways, that's for sure. I don't know if it's a natural way or not. I just think that's the way tennis has gone.

Q. Do you think that with Nadal having trouble with his knees and Federer having taken a break and changes in his family that this tournament and tournaments in the next few weeks are more wide open, are more there for someone other than those two to beat?
ANDY MURRAY: Well, I think that the way the tournaments have gone this year, you know, that would suggest that other guys can win the bigger tournaments even when Rafa and Roger were playing well.
I mean, I think here because they've taken a break everyone is eager to play matches and play well. You know, Rafa with his personality and the way he is on court, I would expect him to be desperate to get back out there and want to play very well, and he's not going to be mentally tired.
I don't think that the draw is that open. I mean, a lot of guys are -- a lot of guys are playing well, which has been the case for a lot of the year. It's not just been about Roger and Rafa. Other guys have had big wins, too.

Q. I'm sure you were disappointed not being in the final, but did you watch the Wimbledon final?
ANDY MURRAY: I saw -- I missed the first three-and-a-half sets, and then I saw bits and pieces of the match. I didn't really watch it that closely. I just didn't fancy -- I don't know. I had played a lot of tennis and seen a lot tennis in the last few months. It was kind of nice to have three, four weeks away from it.

Q. When if you are watching the very end of it, are you actually cheering for one guy or the other, pulling for one guy or the other?
ANDY MURRAY: No. I mean, I think that -- it's tough, because I mean, a lot of people obviously wanted Federer to break the record. It wasn't like I was anti- Federer breaking records, because I've said all along I think he's probably the greatest player ever. So that was never sort of a doubt in my mind.
You know, sometimes it's nice, you know, when you have guys like Roddick who a lot of guys have sort of written off for, well, a number of years, you know, for no reason at all, just, you know, saying that he's not going to win another Slam, it would have been nice to have seen him, you know, win, as well, because he's been around in the top 10 for so many years now and been a great player for so long.
It's just nice when you see guys having a chance. You know, I think he even said a few years ago he didn't necessarily know if he was going to get another opportunity and he came unbelievably close at Wimbledon.
That was nice to see, and I wouldn't have minded seeing Andy win.

Q. Is No. 2 on your mind at all?
ANDY MURRAY: Well, no. I mean, I've been asked about it a lot, so it's impossible not to think about it a little bit, but when I'm playing my match, it's the furthest thing from my mind. The only thing I was thinking was winning and nothing to do with rankings or anything.

End of FastScripts

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