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U.S. OPENAugust 30, 2012Milos RaonicNEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK M. RAONIC/P. Mathieu THE MODERATOR: Questions, please. Q. I think we can say when you go for an ace on a set point on a second serve, it's like a lot of players would do when you hit a forehand, you're that confident with that stroke? MILOS RAONIC: Yeah, I'm not saying I know I'll get an ace, but I know I'll make it 80% or 90% of the time. I know most of the time it will be an advantage even if it comes back. Q. In this particular case, what was the thought process where he was positioned, why you decided to hit it where you hit it? MILOS RAONIC: The first one went to the body because he was standing close. The second one went to the forehand because he has a better backhand. Q. Not because there was a bigger opening? MILOS RAONIC: No. I was going more to his backhand. It's the one he'd expect for less and obviously he has a better backhand. Q. Federer said recently often before he tosses the ball he changes his mind about where to serve. Is that something you do? MILOS RAONIC: I know where I want to go. If I see in the corner of my sight that my opponent moves, I'm able to change where I decide to go. Q. How do you compare today's performance to two days ago? MILOS RAONIC: Much better as far as basics are concerned. Still need to do quite a few things better. The two breaks I got, I played two good points each time. He sort of gifted me two of them. So I was a little bit ‑‑ wish I could have done better. I didn't do that well on my return games. I was just not doing enough with the ball. The only time I really did it is when I started, I don't know, for me, maybe grunting a little bit at 4‑All was the only point I played the way I would have wanted to play all the match before. I sort of started letting out a bit more. Obviously hit better shots. I was able to force a bit more on him. Q. 4‑All in the third set? MILOS RAONIC: In the tiebreak. Q. I wanted to know how you felt after this victory going to the next round? Probably facing Granollers? MILOS RAONIC: I think he's down a set and a break. No, I feel good about it. I'm getting better. Obviously I now have two days to get even better. I feel if I do, I'll have my chances and I'll feel good about that. I've played James before almost two years ago. I have not played Marcel, but I know him well from practice and so forth. Both are going to be tough. Both play quite different. At the same time it's more about them adjusting to me rather than myself to them. Q. Do you have any comments on Andy Roddick's announcement of retiring? MILOS RAONIC: I didn't really expect it; it's not like I didn't expect it. You didn't know. He's done great things. He did a lot for tennis in a part where it was struggling a little bit after Sampras and Agassi was getting a little bit older, was struggling a little bit. He did a lot for it then. Then he helped out the sport a lot. He had a magnificent career. A lot of feats that not many people had that I think a lot of people forget. I think he was eight or ten years in the top 10, which is very impressive. He's done a lot of great things for himself and the sport. It's sad, but I'm sure he has a lot of exciting things to look forward to. Q. Did you see him? MILOS RAONIC: No. Q. Are you going to play a retired tennis player in the fall? MILOS RAONIC: I guess so. I guess that's the way it goes. Q. How were the conditions out there, the heat, the crowd? MILOS RAONIC: It's a nice stadium. It's quite open. There was really not too much wind. The heat was okay. I didn't find it was too hot today. Maybe things were going a little bit better than other times, so everything seemed a little bit lighter. So I like that stadium. I practiced on it a few times. It was nice. It's a nice court. In the end of it it's more so about how I play than the court. Q. Did he have any surprises for you, anything about his game you didn't expect? MILOS RAONIC: I expected a lot of things. He was changing a few times. Some parts of the match he was playing more passive than other times. It wasn't really a surprise because I gave him a lot of openings. He was doing a lot of things well. Q. Your relationship with your serve, is it stranger than like a relationship with a forehand or backhand? MILOS RAONIC: In what sense? Q. Forehand and backhand, you're going to be on a little more. Serve is more unpredictable. MILOS RAONIC: No, it's quite a bit more predictable because you don't depend on what anybody else does. You have all the time in the world. Obviously a time limit. Some guys are known for bouncing the ball a lot. But you have all the time in the world. It's really up to you. I don't think I have too many bad service days. It's not like I did anything special yesterday to serve better today. I just relaxed. It's like riding a bike. I know how to serve. I've just got to get it going. Q. He said before the match he wanted to play before the match he wanted to play on a bigger court because of your kick serve. Was that in the strategy? MILOS RAONIC: I would have used that on ‑‑ I don't know what the biggest court is around, on Ashe to practice courts with somebody else practicing right beside. I'm going to use that serve if it helps me. It's a big change. It makes them think a bit more next time I come to serve. Q. If by any chance you play Blake, that would be more of a glamour match. Would you like to play an Ashe if it was like a night match? MILOS RAONIC: I would like to, yes. Do I think about it, no, because I don't have any control over it. It would be amazing. There's a long ways to go for that. Some people like Ashe; some people like the other stadiums more. I don't know. I haven't played on any. For me it's all first experiences that I look forward to having one day. Q. Did you ever practice on Ashe? MILOS RAONIC: No. Q. Did you learn anything in the match against Hewitt about this crowd? MILOS RAONIC: A little bit, yeah. But I felt it helped him more. I didn't feel it demotivated me in any way. It's normal. There's a lot of people that can silence that; I don't care where you're from. It's hard for anybody to really get a crowd up against Federer. Doesn't matter if it's in Spain for Nadal. People enjoy watching Federer. I'm sure it's a pleasant feeling to have. But it's something you don't have any control over, so why care about it? FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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