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WIMBLEDON

July 3, 2011

Luke Saville

LONDON, ENGLAND

L. SAVILLE/L. Broady
2-6, 6-4, 6-2

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. How does it feel to be titled 'Wimbledon champion'?
LUKE SAVILLE: It's an unbelievable feeling. After putting the disappointment of the Australian Open loss behind me, to win the final, looking kind of bleak there for a little bit, down a set and a break, but to fight back and win in the third set was nice.
You know, words can't describe the feeling. It's unbelievable. I'm playing a couple of futures next week in England. I'm hoping to bring this form that I've produced here onto the men's futures circuit.

Q. How did you get yourself going, down a set and a break, then breaks again in the third? What was getting you going to recover and then eventually win?
LUKE SAVILLE: Well, first I feel like I didn't play my best tennis today. I wasn't serving great, making a few costly unforced errors.
I think my composure under pressure this week especially has been great. I found myself in a few tough positions throughout my earlier matches, but I think that came out today again.
I was down a set and a break there, like you mentioned. I just fought my way back. I hung in there. I thought he may get a few nerves.
He smelled the finish line. His first-serve percentage dropped off a little bit there, and I started to dictate the points a little bit more. Once I got the second set, I knew there was a big chance.
I think I was improving throughout the whole match. By the end of it, I was hitting the ball great and serving a lot better. It was great to finish the match off with a smash. It was good.

Q. What did it feel like when that match point was done, and then what did it feel like when you were holding the trophy?
LUKE SAVILLE: Firstly I thought, you know, it was going to be harder than that. He chucked in a few double-faults. It was match point. I thought he was going to put up a fight. I didn't feel like I was going to win that point, for some reason.
But I hit a great return. That ball went up there. The crowd kind of hushed a little bit. I hit the winner. Just dropped my racquet. I didn't know what to do.
I didn't want to lie down. I didn't think it was necessary. But, you know, I looked up at my mates, just complete joy.
Then holding the trophy up, I remember Jiri holding the trophy up in Australia. I was looking at him and I was bitterly disappointed. So today holding it up was an unbelievable feeling.

Q. You're only the fifth Australian boy to win this championship. Names like John Alexander, Pat Cash. What does something like that mean to you?
LUKE SAVILLE: Well, as soon as I went into the changing room, Pat Cash was on the far end. He just said congratulations to me.
Yeah, I can't explain the feelings I'm feeling at the moment. It's an unbelievable feeling going through my body at the moment.
Cash turned out not to be a bad player. He won the actual Wimbledon, the men's. That's my next goal. The juniors is unbelievable, but I think the men's is the real deal, obviously.
I was brought up on the grass back in country South Australia. I know how to play on it. Hopefully I'll be here years to come playing the men's.

Q. There's been all the negative talk about Australian tennis. Bernard gets to the quarterfinals here. Ashleigh Barty in the junior girls final. You won the boys final. What sort of encouragement is that going to be for you guys?
LUKE SAVILLE: I remember Todd Woodbridge speaking to me. He said the morale of the story is don't tank, keep fighting to that last point. Even if you lose, give your fellow competitors a message that you're going to keep on fighting till the last point. Have that never-say-die attitude.
I think it's great. I think Australian junior tennis, although Bernard is not a junior anymore, he made the semis maybe last year or the year before, so I think we're going the right direction.
I think we have a good environment in Australian tennis right now.

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