WIMBLEDON

June 25, 2003

Lee Childs

LEE CHILDS: Not really. I made too many mistakes, really. I wasn't solid enough from the start. And then the third set, I actually got a break up, then got broke back, but then break up again. Then I had to come off for the rain which was a bit disappointing, really. I could have done with staying on and sort of like keep going a bit, you know? But, yeah, I didn't serve as well today and, yeah, just basically all around I didn't play as well. I didn't play as solid as the other day, really. But I think that comes with maybe a bit of experience or something, or, you know, playing guys at this level.

LEE CHILDS: Maybe. Well, I'd say so because, I mean, I don't play many matches like this anyway. So, hopefully, I can build on my result on Monday and, you know, start to play -- obviously, want to be playing more of these matches.

LEE CHILDS: He is a very good player. He wouldn't be where he is if he wasn't a very good player. But on grass, I think I should have taken advantage of him a little bit more. You know, I should have come in a bit more, I think, and rushed him a bit. But his forehand was very good, down-the-line, very good forehand. He was just solid all around, and his serve was pretty decent. So, I mean, he's a very good player.

LEE CHILDS: I did, definitely. When I was in the gym I felt, "This is gonna be a good match." You know, because, I mean, a Spanish guy, probably more comfortable on clay. And, you know, I'm probably more comfortable on grass than he would be. But he didn't seem too worried about the grass. I mean, the grass courts these days are so good that you can stay at the back - like Hewitt proved last year. I mean, you can stay at the back and win because the bounce is so true. And it is beginning to be tougher for, you know, guys that come forward a bit more because, you know, the guys that stay at the back can actually stay at the back now. Yeah, he seemed pretty comfortable as well.

LEE CHILDS: Positives from that match or just from the...?

LEE CHILDS: The fact that I can compete with these guys. You know, the guys were all inside Top 50 probably. And, hopefully, you know, I can take on the positive that I beat a seed here, and I can go into my next tournament - I think I'm playing in Bristol in a challenger down there - and hopefully do well down there so I can then start playing these guys regular, you know. So that's what I'll try and do.

LEE CHILDS: Well, to me, I mean, that's what I play week in and week out anyway, so it wouldn't be...

LEE CHILDS: Yeah, well, it's obviously different, isn't it? But this is Wimbledon. This is probably the best tournament in the world. So, I mean, that comes with playing Wimbledon, I guess.

LEE CHILDS: I don't know who he plays next. Who does he play next?

LEE CHILDS: Srichaphan, if he wins. I think he might struggle against him just because Srichaphan probably comes in, comes forward a lot more, and can sort of take his sort of game, you know, the baseline game, and take it away from him a little bit. But he does pass very well. There's no reason why -- but I think he could be -- by the end of the year, he could be a very good player. His ranking could be easily inside the Top 20, easy. He's definitely got very good potential.

LEE CHILDS: Well, I mean, we're all very lucky, aren't we? We're English and we have one of the biggest tournaments in the world in our country. We are very lucky. But I don't think we get it too easy. Okay, we get a wildcard -- you know, the chance to have a wildcard at Wimbledon. I mean, this year, it's been a lot tougher - you had the playoffs and those things. I mean, it's not just been given to you on a plate, you actually had to earn the wildcard, which I think is a very good idea because you just feel a bit more -- you deserve to be here a bit more. I don't think we get it too easy. We have to travel just like everyone else, you know, and go play tournaments week in, week out. It's just the same as anyone else, really.

LEE CHILDS: I think so. I mean, the people I know and the guys that I've been around, they seem pretty hungry to want to be tennis players. So I think everyone's going to be wanting to become the best they can be, really, and putting the hours in on the court. It's not only that. Obviously, you've got to know what you're doing on the tennis court as well. I think the guys around us and the guys I practice with, they're all very up for being good tennis players.

LEE CHILDS: Well, I'd say, you know, inside the Top 100, trying to get inside the Top 100 to start with. Then once you're inside the Top 100, then you can try and push for Top 50. You set different goals for yourself. But that's definitely one of my goals, is to get inside the Top 100 first and then do -- set more goals within there.

LEE CHILDS: Not really. I mean, the court I played on today, the crowd were fantastic, really. Again, they were right behind me. I think he probably felt a little bit sort of uptight sometimes when they were cheering for me and stuff. So, I mean, I thought it was great. To be honest with you, I don't think it would have made a difference if I was on Centre Court or Court 1, whatever it was. On the day, I lost today, and that's it really.

LEE CHILDS: Well, you can always say "might of," "could have."

LEE CHILDS: It was. The third set was definitely -- yeah, I had the sort of swing of things going my way, and I would loved to have just sort of carried on, really, and tried to close that set out. Then two-sets-to-one, I mean, you know... I was down two-sets-to-one Monday, so anything could happen really. I think if I rattled his cage a little bit, I might of got back in the match, really.

LEE CHILDS: I guess. Well, I do -- yeah, I'm generally a little bit slow starter maybe to some people. But, yeah, I came back out today the first -- the four games that I played when I came back out were not great at all. I mean, I'd started off pretty slow on the first service game, made a few unforced errors. And then when he served, I didn't really test him much in that game. Then I lost my serve again, hitting a double-fault at like 30-40, or something stupid. So, I mean, I don't know if it's concentration or just starting slow, really. I mean, it's tough, like coming back, once you feel like, "Wish I could have carried on like that a bit," you know? And then coming back out and having to start, you got to warm up again and start it all off again sort of thing. It is difficult.

LEE CHILDS: Just in the locker room, maybe get some -- bit of food, a few bananas, drinks some water, whatever you drink, and then just stay loose really. You stretch a bit, change your clothes, get yourself -- get your mind ready for what you've got to do when you get back out, really.

LEE CHILDS: I think they did, to be honest with you. When we were sitting there -- well, that actual game at 2-all, there was a couple points when it started to rain. I could feel it was getting a bit slippery, you know. I think if you carry on like that, I mean, you could do yourself a bit of damage, and that would be terrible just to have to pull out because you fell and slipped or did something. So I think it was probably the right idea, really, to put the covers on.

LEE CHILDS: Yeah. We play the top seeds, actually - Bhupathi and Mirnyi. So we'll probably be playing tomorrow, I guess. We're not playing today, so tomorrow definitely.

LEE CHILDS: James Auckland, yeah. I'm not sure when we play. Probably find out around 6:30 tonight.

LEE CHILDS: Well, of course. I mean, you've got to support the home-grown talent, don't you? Yeah, I'll definitely be watching for the rest of the -- and, hopefully, I can keep going in the doubles. I mean, there's no reason why we can't do that. Hopefully, I'll still be in the tournament in the doubles. So, yeah, I'll be watching.