U.S. OPEN

September 4, 1993

Patrick McEnroe

PATRICK McENROE: You get used to it. Done it before. It is not ideal for anyone. It is something that you get used too. I don't think it really affected the match.

PATRICK McENROE: Doesn't bother me at all. I am used to it.

PATRICK McENROE: Obviously it was straight sets, 6-4, but I think it was a bit closer; there was a lot of close games. I had a lot of chances, you know, that is the bottom line. You hit it on the head. I had a bunch of chances. I had a lot of breakpoints. I just didn't make the shots. He played well; he played consistent. But I felt like the match was in my hands. I felt like I was the aggressor most of the time. And it just one of those things; I just didn't make the shots that I had to make at the key times.

PATRICK McENROE: Well, he is real strong, real consistent. I think he served well today. He had some free points on his first serve and he moves well. He runs a lot of balls down. He is tough to get the ball past. That about sums it up.

PATRICK McENROE: Yeah. He keeps going. No matter what, he is always there. He is a great fighter and he hits the ball hard. He hits the ball hard -- if you give him a short ball, he will take advantage of it; not like some guys. Obviously, he is a better claycourt player, but the reason he can play well on hard courts, because if he gets a short ball he can do something with it and attack it.

PATRICK McENROE: No.

PATRICK McENROE: I think everyone has respect for him because of what a competitor he is. He works really hard at his game. Obviously, the way he came back from that was an amazing thing. I think anyone would respect a guy who could do that.

PATRICK McENROE: Well, I mean, it was difficult for everyone. It is -- we are used to it. That is part of the job, and, you know, I don't think - like I said, I do not think it affected the way the match went. I think we both came out; played well when we came back from the breaks and what else could you do.

PATRICK McENROE: Obviously, I was trying to think of something when I was getting beaten but I tried to attack when I could. I tried to come to the net as much as I could. I probably could have come in a little bit more. But, you know, it is easier said then done. The guy is hitting deep and hard, and I knew what I had to do and I just-- I felt like I was right there and the key points, when I could have broken back, when I could have gotten ahead, I think at 3-All in the second set I had a chance to get ahead, and I just played a couple of loose points against a guy like Thomas who is so consistent and who keeps coming, you know, you can't afford to do that. You can get away with it with some other players but against guys like him those are the points that you have to make. Today I didn't make them.

PATRICK McENROE: I felt like I played pretty well. Since about March, I felt like my game has improved a lot. I feel like I am playing well now. There are still a bunch of tournaments the rest of the year. Obviously, the U.S. Open is the last big, big tournament of the year, but there are still a lot of tournaments left. I still have my things I'd like to do by the end of the year and I hope I can reach them, and I think if I keep playing the way I have been playing I will take that into next year. I felt I had a big opportunity to do better. I mean, the draw opened up a little bit. Now it is a good chance for any of those guys, and I felt like I had a reasonable chance, but today, like I said, I just didn't get it done.