Interviews
Day 7 - Tim Henman interview
Sunday, May 30, 2004
Transcribed Interviewed
Q. Gave us a bit of a shock at the start. I'm sure yourself also. First of
all, how were you feeling health-wise out there?
TIM HENMAN: I felt good. I think I'm pretty close to, you know, feeling a
hundred percent. You know, if you're going to play matches like
that, you need to be able to draw on everything you've got
because, you know, it was a tough match physically, but I think
an even tougher match mentally.
Q. What was it at the start? The conditions, the fact he was attacking as
much as you were attacking? You obviously didn't seem to get the rhythm
hat you had in your previous match?
TIM HENMAN: I think, yeah, I needed to make a few adjustments to the
conditions. It was obviously cooler. That court was playing
pretty slow.
But, you know, didn't really dictate with my style enough.
Playing someone like Llodra, he's trying to do the same thing.
You know, for two sets, he did it much, much better than me.
You know, he was the one that was dictating the play. He was
serving more aggressively and getting forward. You know, I had
to try and find a way to turn it around.
You know, his style is awkward. You know, he's got a lot of, you
know, ability. He's pretty flashy, he hits such great shots, and
then he can miss. You know, I think I've got to try to turn
around those situations a little bit quicker. It was really two
pretty ordinary sets for me to begin with, and I'm up against it.
But I certainly take a lot of positives out of it, you know,
determination and the sort of mental strength that I showed to be
able to, you know, get through somehow.
Q. As the match built into a crescendo, all the French crowd were going
bananas about everything, it was great at the end that obviously they
appreciated Llodra, gave him a great cheer, but as you were walking off, they
gave you a great applause, too?
TIM HENMAN: Yeah, I think they're such a knowledgeable crowd. I think our
styles, the two of us, our styles, is pretty rare - certainly on
clay. They've probably seen more volleys in that match than
they've seen on the rest of the tournament.
It's a great atmosphere to play in. I certainly had my moments
reflecting on the match against Canas in Australia. You know, that
was a pretty bitter pill to swallow. I just wanted to, you know,
keep fighting as hard as I could to try and come away with a win.
You know, that's what I did. I've got to, you know, play better on
Tuesday. But, you know, I'm through to the quarters. So there's a
lot to be positive about.
Q. Following that win, where does it rate as a Grand Slam win?
TIM HENMAN: I think, you know, in terms of the atmosphere and the drama and
the situation, pretty high. But I think, you know, my big focal
point is my performance and my style and, you know, my commitment
to my style. You know, I've really tried to -- I've really tried
to emphasize that to you guys.
I think for 1 hour and 49 minutes, you know, I'm playing the
wrong way. That's not a great sign, but I think it's certainly
-- you know, to come through a match like that and find a way to
win, I think it kind of is character building, that's for sure
(smiling).
Q. Having come through that tricky game at 4-5, you had three convincing
service games after that. What was the difference there? Getting the
nerves out of the way in that one game?
TIM HENMAN: Yeah, absolutely. I was obviously serving to stay in the match. It
was pretty swirly. I was definitely pretty tight, as well. You
know, your serving is a lot about rhythm, and I certainly lost
my rhythm. It was, I think psychologically to get through that
game where, you know, I think I served three doubles, you know, I
was able to, you know, save a match point.
Again, I just had to keep -- you know, keep competing as hard as I
could. It's funny, you know, the next three service games, my
rhythm was very good and I don't think I was really in trouble. To
win 12 out of the last 13 points really the way that I did, that's
the aspect that I'll be focusing most of my attention on and was,
you know, really a great way to finish it off.
Q. I think you played Chela twice on clay, Monte-Carlo, one win each. How do
you approach that game?
TIM HENMAN: Well, I think in all honesty, it's a little bit more straight
forward of a match because I've seen him play some of his matches
this week or this tournament, and I think, you know, it's pretty
obvious the way he's going to play.
He's not going to be coming to the net a great deal. Therefore, it
gives me a great chance to really dictate. But I've got to commit
to that. If I don't, you know, commit and I end up getting caught
behind the baseline and not playing aggressively, then that's going
to favor him. I need to do that better than I did today.
Q. If you can choose the surface in a match with Llodra, what kind of surface
would you prefer?
TIM HENMAN: I think just a regular hard court or something. You know, we have
similar styles.
Q. Why?
TIM HENMAN: Because I think on clay, it's sometimes awkward to return his
serve. You know, he gets a lot of kick, a lot of movement on it.
And on a hard court, you know, you've got sure-footing. You're not
slipping and sliding. You know, that's the surface that I feel
pretty comfortable.
But, you know, whatever the surface, I feel good about my game.
You just have to, you know, deal with things as best you can on
the day.
Q. You have spoken in the past as you get into tournaments about maybe looking
too far, restricted you, made you nervous. You've been guilty of that. Was
there any of that in the first couple of sets, stopping you from doing what
you wanted to?
TIM HENMAN: Perhaps that had a small part to play, first time in the 16's in
the French. You know, I definitely, you know, wasn't really moving
particularly well. And I was just being reactive rather than
proactive. I felt like I was just -- I was trying to, you know,
play each point, but it was him that was the one that was dictating
the play. You know, that's something I really need to avoid
because that's not my style.
But, you know, again, I certainly didn't play my best. But just
to win a match of that nature I think, you know, is a very, very
positive thing. Sure, there's some negatives, but I think it's
important to, you know, push those aside and really focus on the
positive aspects.
Q. I know it's a big, big ask, but you're in the quarterfinals. Can you do it?
Do you think you could do the impossible?
TIM HENMAN: Which is what (smiling)?
Q. Win the French Open.
TIM HENMAN: I talked about that yesterday, didn't I?
You know, I'm playing well. It's totally the wrong way to approach
it. If you start thinking down the road, then you're not going to
concentrate on your job. And today, you know, there wasn't a lot of
clarity in the first two sets. You know, that's the challenge.
So, you know, who knows what's going to happen. I need to play
better on Tuesday. I need to be more committed to my style. And if
I do that, and I lose, then I don't have any complaints. But if I,
you know, don't play the right way, you know, that's when you feel
like you'll let yourself down.
Q. There was a smash he got back in the fifth set. You got into trouble on that
serving game. Did you think that was a fluke?
TIM HENMAN: It was a fluke. It was a turning point of that game. You know, what
could I do about that? You know, sure, I would have liked to have
won the point. But did I do anything wrong? No. I hit two great
smashes. He charges in and makes a one-in-a-million shot. It was.
It was a big point. First point in that game. I ended up losing my
serve.
You know, I think it's emphasized on clay. Sometimes things like
that happen.
You know, when I hit -- when was it, Love-15, the game that I
broke, I hit the running forehand. Probably catch the outside
edge of the line. Half a centimeter here or there, and that one
went my way.
Q. Now you're a clay court expert, is that the reason for the Latin look, the
unshaven?
TIM HENMAN: Yeah, I think -- I haven't been shaving the whole clay court
season. It's coming through (smiling).
Q. The match you had with Ferrero here on the Saturday last year, would that be
kind of the biggest challenge of a real clay court guy, or a Chela? Did you
learn anything from that match playing against the best last year?
TIM HENMAN: I think for the set that I played, the set that I won, rather,
against Ferrero, I played my style. You know, I played it very well
and I won it. But I think 12 months ago, you know, I couldn't
maintain that level for three, four or five sets. But certainly,
you know, my game has improved dramatically I think - certainly
on this surface.
That's going to be the challenge on Tuesday. I'm going to have to
play very well for a long period of time. But I think I'm capable
of that.
Q. Why couldn't you continue it? Mental or physical?
TIM HENMAN: Probably a combination of the two. Yeah, I wasn't good enough to
sustain that level. But I've been doing it more and more in
practice. I'm doing it better in some matches. You know, I'm going
to have to do it well on Tuesday.
Q. There are so many close matches this year. I think not only you but other
great champions saved match points. What do you think of that situation?
TIM HENMAN: Again, on clay, I think there are so many players that can play
to a really high level, and certainly on the men's side you look
at Safin, a couple of his matches, you see Clement and Santoro.
The difference between winning and losing is so small, you get
guys competing so hard, you're going to get matches of this
nature.
I've certainly lost a few of these in Grand Slams. I think that
adds to my satisfaction of actually coming through today. It
couldn't have got much closer. You know, I won some important
points at the end. It's a good one, good feeling.
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