|
|||
|
|||
|
 |
|
|
DAVIS CUP BY BNP PARIBAS WORLD GROUP FIRST ROUND: BRAZIL v USAFebruary 3, 2013John IsnerJACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA T. BELLUCCI/J. Isner THE MODERATOR: Questions for John. Q. How much does this one hurt? JOHN ISNER: Yeah, it hurts a lot. You know, I could have won this match. Honestly, I felt like I was playing better today than I was on Friday. Feel like I was hitting the ball better. I just couldn't quite win the big points. It's almost like I wanted it too badly. I just felt like I was forcing it, wasn't going for my shots like I should. Confidence‑wise I'm not even close to where I want to be. I mean, yeah, you know, I don't think it's really a game issue. I'm starting to get better after all the time off I had. It's just confidence. Today was extremely disappointing for me. You know, can't sugarcoat it with me. My five‑set record is atrocious, it's simple as that. It falls on me 100%. You know, I got to try to get better personally with that. I feel bad. I didn't come through for the team today. Q. When you were talking about your confidence, is it the fact you've been off for a month or confidence in your game as it is now? JOHN ISNER: Well, both. It goes hand‑in‑hand. I would have loved to have come into this tie having played good tennis in Australia, but it's not the case. For me, you know, my confidence, it sort of comes and goes very quickly for me it seems like. I think a lot of that out there today was between the ears. For the most part I consider myself a mentally strong player. But, you know, I just wasn't able to free myself up to go for the right shots at the big points. I mean, I had my chances. It just didn't happen. He played better than me and he deserved to win. Q. In terms of the five‑setters, do you feel more that mental confidence or do you feel sometimes physically you lack stamina? JOHN ISNER: No, it wasn't physical today. I mean, there's no conditions out there. Everybody always thinks I'm more tired than I am out there. It wasn't physical. If it looked that way, I don't know, but it just wasn't. I didn't come to play at the crucial moments in those fourth and fifth sets. I started off great, and I just wasn't able to maintain that. You know, I thought he played pretty well. It's on me. I got to get better. We're in a dogfight now. A lot of that rests on my shoulders, that's the reason why. Q. Was there anything that Jim could have said to you during those fourth and fifth sets? Could he have helped you at all? JOHN ISNER: He did. He was telling me everything he should tell me. Jim's a phenomenal coach, top class. He was telling me all the right things. I was listening. I just wasn't able to get it done. Like I said, it's all on me. Jim, he was telling me just to keep my legs behind the ball. Big points, Love‑30, take my time here and there, try not to rush it, try to free up. I know these things as well. He was just reiterating them. It can be sort of a cruel sport when things don't go your way. That was the case out there today. In the future I want an opportunity to try to redeem myself in a situation like that. I was disappointed in how the match eventually went today. Q. How much harder is it to keep your confidence high when your serve isn't working as well as it did on Friday and he was putting a lot of pressure, more breakpoint opportunities? JOHN ISNER: It didn't have anything to do with my serve. Yeah, probably I served better on Friday, but I thought I hit the ball better today. That comes with all that, my serve, everything else, with matches. One of the encouraging things I can take out of today's match was my knee didn't bother me. No excuse there. I was fine. I was fit to play. I mean, you know, ideally I would have liked to have had matches and good practice before this event, but that was the hand I was dealt. But to come out of this tie, to have confidence that my knee is doing all right, hopefully it will be good for me going forward. But, you know, losing Davis Cup matches is extremely tough. It's never easy. Winning them is probably the most joy I've ever felt. These matches last year I won, I was on top of a mountain. Now I'm not on top of a mountain, so... Q. Your opponent must have misread you because he felt you were wearing down, and he was trying to take advantage of that, especially in the fifth set. JOHN ISNER: No, I wasn't. Physically I felt fine. Like I said, I always look a lot more tired than I am. I can definitely get in better shape, and I wish I was in better shape today, but I just haven't been able to put in the work to be able to do that. I've had a lot of time off since the last match in 2012, through the off‑season. I haven't played any matches really, any competitive matches. You got to try to work through. I did that on Friday. I had the chance to do it today, but it didn't happen. Q. What was the conversation with the chair late in the fourth? JOHN ISNER: Yeah, to be honest I don't appreciate their fans at all. I don't think they're too classy at all. Q. What were they doing? JOHN ISNER: Not only their actual fans but the guys on their bench are saying stuff, toss the ball up, Double‑Fault. I can hear it. It didn't affect me, it's just I don't think there's any room for that. I'm not going to sugarcoat this as well. I don't appreciate their fans at all. I think they're very rude. Q. You talked about the pressure moments in the fourth and the fifth where you didn't come through. The third‑set tiebreaker, you played a fantastic tiebreaker there. JOHN ISNER: Yeah, I did. I had momentum there, too. Look, a lot of times when I play matches, it hinges on a few points here and there. I don't know what it was, 1‑All in the fourth set, I think I had a breakpoint. I played a pretty good point, hit a great return. I just missed a forehand long. If I can get that point, I like my chances to get that set. If I can get that breakpoint in the fifth set, I like my chances to win the set. That's how a lot of my matches go. I was capitalizing early and I was not capitalizing late. It just wasn't to be. Q. You could overcome your physical game by playing more games and matches. But how do you get through the mental aspect of it where you are right now? JOHN ISNER: Just got to break through in a big moment, whether it's a Davis Cup match, whether it's a Grand Slam. It's something I haven't done. It feels like it's a huge gorilla on my back or something. I haven't been able to do it. It's wearing on me a bit, to be honest, mentally. It's very disappointing. You know, it's something I have to improve. But I play tennis for a living, so I got to take the good with the bad. My five‑set record is very bad. I got to try to improve it. Q. You mentioned the Brazilian side. How about the home fans, did you hear the Bulldog cheers? JOHN ISNER: Crowd was fine, good. They were very respectful towards the Brazilian team. I can't say when my opponent is on the side beside our bench, I can pretty much guarantee you any of our guys are saying, Double‑fault, doing stuff like that. Q. How about your season this year? What are your goals for yourself this year? JOHN ISNER: I don't know. I got to sit down and talk about that. To be honest, we got to try to get through this match. I'm not thinking about my personal goals this year right now at all. Sam lost the first set, I don't know if y'all know that. Got to try to pull him through. I didn't do my part today, and that's what's tough about being on a team. It feels a lot worse than it does had this been a regular tournament. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
About ASAP Sports •
FastScripts Archive •
Recent Interviews •
Captioning •
Upcoming Events •
Contact Us
FastScripts | Events Covered | Our Clients | Other Services | ASAP in the News | Site Map | Job Opportunities | Links |
|
ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297
|