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ROGERS CUP MEN

August 11, 2011

Gael Monfils

MONTREAL, QUEBEC

G. MONFILS/V. Troicki
3-6, 7-6, 7-6

THE MODERATOR: Questions in English.

Q. Is there even more satisfaction to win a match when you fought off three match points in it?
GAEL MONFILS: Yeah. I mean, for sure it is. For sure you're quite happy because you're still in the tournament. It means I've been stronger mentally over there, I had strong belief in myself. So for sure I was very satisfied to win with saving match points.

Q. As a player is there a physical skill and mental skill you're proud of? Being mentally strong, it sometimes separates players. Is that something you would pride yourself in?
GAEL MONFILS: I mean, you know, on this situation, my main skill is know I can run like forever. My belief is I know I can run forever. And physically to be like in the red limit, I know I need to push hard.
So maybe mentally I'm strong because I know I can run forever and I can cover my court for many hours. Maybe that's why I was a bit stronger than him today.

Q. Do you remember many matches in your career where you fought off a lot of match points?
GAEL MONFILS: Federer, in Bercy. I saved five match points last year.

Q. And won the match?
GAEL MONFILS: Yeah.
THE MODERATOR: Questions in French.

Q. You are really lucky. You saved one match point yesterday, three today. Who is protecting you?
GAEL MONFILS: My parents.

Q. Seriously, do you have protection?
GAEL MONFILS: Well, I'm like a diesel: it takes time for me to get going. I was slow in the beginning of the match. I had trouble adapting to the conditions today with the wind and everything. My level of game dropped. I was staying far behind.
But at a given moment when the conditions started improving, I felt he was getting tense. I thought that I should try something: play more aggressive, go up to the net, try to chip. So I tried to build up my points, although I was still not playing great.

Q. What do you expect for your match against Djokovic tomorrow?
GAEL MONFILS: I don't know. You know that I'm very bad at answering this type of question.

Q. But how will you approach that match? What will the conditions be?
GAEL MONFILS: Well, I hope they will be better than today. What can I say? He won 40 times but lost only once.

Q. You could say, for example, that it's fun playing against him?
GAEL MONFILS: It's absolutely not fun. It's going to be a tough match. I would have liked to be able to go further in this draw, and there would be more favorable players to play than him.

Q. Well that's a good answer.
GAEL MONFILS: Sometimes I know I can give him problems. I'll try to do that.

Q. Was it a good choice to play Washington, making a lot of efforts lately?
GAEL MONFILS: It was a good choice: I made the final.

Q. But aren't you a bit tired?
GAEL MONFILS: I admit I am a little bit. I've played two matches here. Getting ready, preparing is tiring. Reaching the quarterfinal is not bad, but it's tougher physically. It had been a long time since I've played this many matches in a row. I had good wins. I played against good players. So I believe it was a good choice.

Q. What do you think of the crowd here in MontrÃ©al?
GAEL MONFILS: They are great. In the beginning of the match, since we were not playing very well, they were a bit hesitant. But after, with the suspense, they started cheering and they supported me. I wish tomorrow they will support me from the start.

Q. The match against Djokovic could be a good test for you.
GAEL MONFILS: I don't know if it's a test because I'm not going into that match in the best conditions. I would have liked to have played a good match before, whereas I just played a so-so match.
But I did it already before, coming back strongly. So is it a good test? I don't know. But it's going to be a good match.

Q. You've played Troicki before?
GAEL MONFILS: As to Troicki, I had played him twice before, once in the Orange Bowl and the second time in the US Open juniors. I lost to him in the US Open, but I was injured. In the Orange Bowl, he didn't play well.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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