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WIMBLEDONJune 22, 2013Andy MurrayLONDON, ENGLAND THE MODERATOR: Questions, please. Q. How happy are you with your preparation? ANDY MURRAY: Yeah, it's been good. Obviously got five matches in five days at Queen's, so that was good. And then this week, yeah, we've been pretty lucky with the weather, to be honest. It's pretty much misting all the time. I got another match in at Hurlingham, so it's good. Q. I read in the Daily Mail that Brad Gilbert hoped the crowd during this Wimbledon. How important is the crowd to you? ANDY MURRAY: Yeah, it's very important. In all sports really when you play with the crowd behind you or the home crowd, yeah, it makes a huge difference. Not always just for you, but the guy you're playing against, as well. They can feel a bit intimidated, or if you sort of get a lead on them, you know, it can be hard to come back from that. Q. Could you talk about your first‑round opponent. You played him recently. ANDY MURRAY: Yeah, I mean, I know him pretty well. We practiced quite a few times together over in Miami. He's got a very good attitude. He works very hard. He serves well. You know, he hits the ball pretty flat, which works well on the grass courts. We had a tough match at Queen's. Q. Can you just talk about how you've done pretty well managing playing at home, feeding off the crowd. There's some players who feel more pressure. It's always been a positive for you in terms of taking the support as support instead of pressure. ANDY MURRAY: Yeah, I think everyone handles certain situations differently. Yeah, I've always enjoyed playing here. I've played some of my best tennis here over the course of my career. But, yeah, I mean, I like being nervous before a match. Maybe some players don't like that. I get very nervous before matches here, but I often feel like that helps me play my best tennis. It maybe helps me concentrate better. Some people may feel like they make bad decisions on the court or they don't move as well or whatever it is. You know, I just feel like it makes me focus my mind a bit better. Q. How is the mindset that you bring in this year different than the mindset you brought in last year considering the success you've had since this time last year? ANDY MURRAY: The mindset is still similar in that, you know, I come in wanting to try and win the event. I've prepared as best as I could. I think in some ways, you know, I feel that I'm putting less pressure on myself. But, you know, this tournament obviously means a lot to me. That was pretty obvious after the final last year. I just think, because of what's happened since then that, you know, if I can manage to get myself into the latter stages of the tournament I'd be better equipped to deal with the pressures that go with that. Q. Is there a way in your mind to measure whether the winning of the Olympic gold here and the winning of the Grand Slam title in New York, one or both, helped you in some way increase your confidence or know that you have won the biggest of matches? ANDY MURRAY: Yeah, I think both of them obviously will have helped me in different ways. But I think also the Wimbledon final last year was important for me. The couple of weeks after that, as well. You know, I think in my career there's normally been quite gradual sort of progress most years with my results and things. And I think, yeah, the Wimbledon final was really tough, but I played well in that final and basically I'd gone for it. There's some shots I would have liked to have changed. But, you know, I went for it and lost the match kind of on my terms. I felt I didn't just sort of sit back and wait. I think that's maybe why I managed to recover from that defeat well. I didn't come off the court thinking kind of, What if? You know, I got back on the practice court five, six days later and I felt great; whereas when I'd lost in slam finals before‑‑ well, you saw my results for a few months afterwards. I hadn't dealt with it particularly well. A combination of that final and the way I played in it, and also having the Olympics to look forward to, I think that was the period that changed me, you know, changed my mindset a bit. Q. You've been back on Twitter and spending more time on the Internet lately. What brought you back to that? How many times have you watched the clip of you hitting Ivan by now? ANDY MURRAY: The clip of Ivan, I mean, I've seen it I'd say double figures probably (smiling). Q. Enjoyed it every time? ANDY MURRAY: More each time, actually (smiling). But, yeah, I mean, kind of since I used Twitter the first time, I mean, years ago, I've sometimes used it for a few months and then not used it. Yeah, I mean, everyone knows it's kind of a good way of interacting with fans on social media. Also, at certain times it's good to just kind of have, I don't know, your point of view. You can say exactly what you want. And, yeah, I don't know how long I'll be able to sort of enjoy it for, how long it will last for, but, yeah, I'll keep doing it while I find it fun. Q. Has Ivan got you back in any way? ANDY MURRAY: Not yet, no. Not yet. Q. Do you remember your first Wimbledon? What does it mean for a British player to play in Wimbledon? ANDY MURRAY: I think it changes all the time. I think with each year it changes. I played the juniors here the first time when I was like 14 years old, 14, 15 years old. When I played here as a senior for the first time, I mean, I actually almost wasn't nervous. I was so excited to really play here. There was no pressure. There was no expectation at all. You're just playing in a competition that you'd always wanted to since, you know, you were a kid really. But obviously now that changes. There's a lot more pressure and a lot more expectation, a lot more nerves. There's still the excitement there. But, yeah, I think for all British players, yeah, it's a huge part of their career. Q. Your reaction to the way the draw worked out with you, Federer and Nadal all being on one side, and if you thought perhaps Nadal's seeding ought to have been higher? ANDY MURRAY: Yeah, no, I don't think it should have been. Yeah, I really don't think it should have been. I mean, last year, you know, Rafa, he lost in the second round of Wimbledon. Yes, it was a shock and it was a big surprise. But with the way our ranking system works, having a one‑year ranking, it's very, very difficult to maintain your ranking if you get an injury. Even with the formula and stuff, because of Rafa's result here last year it was always going to be difficult for him to move up in the seedings. You know, Ferrer made the quarters of Wimbledon last year, made the semis of the US Open, he made semis at the Australian Open, made the final here [sic]. The guy deserves to be seeded where he is. It's not like he's got there by fluke. I mean, he's winning matches and improving every single year. His results in the slams are phenomenal. Incredibly consistent. I have no issue with the seeding. I'd rather Rafa and Roger were on the other side of the draw, but they're not. And then, yeah, you just deal with that. Hopefully I'll be able to put myself in a position where that becomes relevant, because that would mean getting to the semifinals, and I'd love to be there. Thanks. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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