Tuesday, May 28, 2002
http://www.rolandgarros.org/en/

F. SANTORO/M. Norman 6-2, 5-7, 3-6, 6-4, 6-4

Q. I suppose you were quite afraid tonight because things didn't start
very well.
FABRICE SANTORO: Yes. I was afraid until the very end. In the fifth set,
when I thought that I was really winning, 4-Love, he really came back.
He was very strong physically. Really until the very last point, it was
difficult.

Q. Did you think it was going to be an easier match because his results
were not very good so far?
FABRICE SANTORO: Well, mine was zero.

Q. Were you surprised?
FABRICE SANTORO: Well, if you compare with what Magnus has been doing
lately, he hasn't been playing in competition lately. I had a very weak
last month. I think it was a good quality match, given all this. If you
add to this, the rain that was constantly falling during this match, and
if you add the wind, I think through all this it was quite a good match.

Q. Can you compare with your match against Safin last year? They were
very similar.
FABRICE SANTORO: Yes, the weather. It was again, rain, and, again, wind.
You can compare those two matches. He came back very strongly in the
fourth set, and I had to fight for the fifth. Yes, quite similar.

Q. What happened in the second? You were leading 5-3, then he won the
set. It seemed that you were controlling the game at that point. What
happened exactly?
FABRICE SANTORO: I was controlling the game, but up to a point. I was holding
it with my serve. I was playing serve-volley. For the rest of the shots, I
was not as good as he was. He took advantage of that. My serving percentage
went down. I had to rally more from the baseline. That was in his favor.
6-2, 5-3, set point, I think that was quite good. I was playing well. But
I was really holding everything with my serve. So if my percentage of serve
was going down, it was touch and go. This is what happened.

Q. How is your foot? Two weeks ago you were still having problems.
FABRICE SANTORO: Well, I'm feeling better. If not, I would not be on the
court. If I'm playing here today, it's because I think my foot has been
improving constantly for the last two weeks. But it's still quite swollen
and painful. This last match didn't do it any good.

Q. How did you feel to be back in the center court, even under these
conditions with this filthy weather? It probably was a good feeling in
any case.
FABRICE SANTORO: Well, this filthy weather makes it even better. You play
your matches in three stages, under very difficult circumstances, incredible
rallies and shots until the very last point. Most of the crowd is under
umbrellas. Blue sky is perfect, but this makes it even better. I love the
center court. For me, it's the best court in the world. Each time I'm here
and each time I have to play on center court, it makes me very happy. I
feel very much at home on this center court here.

Q. It's always a contact with the public at the end. Did you always feel
that way or is it only since last year?
FABRICE SANTORO: I think this last year was a turning point. I played three
matches on center court. I won twice. There was an incredible match against
Safin. I think during that match against Safin, there was a lot of empathy
with the public. I think the people that were here last year and saw me
playing Safin in the rain probably remembered this today. I have a feeling
there's a bit of de'ja vu maybe. That makes me very, very happy. This is a
Grand Slam. This is the French Open. This is center court.
There is a lot of suspense. You have to put a lot of physical effort. I'm
not a masochist, but I really like this.

Q. (Inaudible)?
FABRICE SANTORO: The next day when you wake up it's hard, even harder. But
I really enjoy matches here. It's not obvious, but I really love it.

Q. You notice that Guy Forget was here.
FABRICE SANTORO: Yes, Guy was there until about the mid fourth. Then he
went to see me in the locker rooms. I had everybody in the stands. I saw
them. I looked at them quite a lot while I was playing. I think this was
quite something.

Q. Are you thinking about the Davis Cup? Same place in September. You
probably will have something to do in singles.
FABRICE SANTORO: No, I'm not thinking about this, not yet. There are three
Slams to be played between the French Open and the Davis Cup, three
different surfaces: grass, hard court, so on, so forth. The 20th of
September seems a long time away. It's true that this is going to be a
fantastic weekend for French tennis. I hope I'll be part of it and we'll
play again in the final.

Q. You lost two years ago against Norman. Can you compare the two matches?
FABRICE SANTORO: Yes. That was on Suzanne Lenglen I lost. That was two
years ago. Suzanne Lenglen is always my "symmetry". I think he really sort
of beat me up. I was not aggressive enough. I was not going to the net
enough. I was running all the time. I did not dare to play serve-volley
enough. I was playing from the back of the court. That is not the sort of
tennis you should play against Norman. So I kept that in mind and decided
today I should play different tennis.