Day 8 - Fernando Gonzalez
Monday, June 2, 2003
Q. You're playing Juan Carlos Ferrero next. I believe you played him in the
boys' final in 1998 here. What do you remember of that game, and how much of a
factor do you think it will be?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: Yes, I remember that. That's a long time ago. We were 17.
Now I'm 22.
But I know that tomorrow is going to be a very interesting match because Juan
Carlos is playing very good tennis, and I'm playing well, so it's going to be
a difficult match for both of us.
Q. Were you expecting such an easy match today? Everything went very smoothly.
Were you expecting something like that?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: I don't know whether you can conclude that this was such an
easy match. I was facing a player who is very, very good, but he was a bit
tired, so I took advantage of that at the beginning.
Q. Do you think you are in a good position, because Moya, Ferrero, all these
big names, you're coming in underneath a little bit, makes you feel
comfortable that maybe people don't notice you too much?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: A good player has to be in position to stand pressure. What
really matters is what I'm going to do on the court. This is the main issue.
Q. How come you need this interpretation, because you speak some English?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: Yes, I manage. I get by in English, but I feel much happier
speaking my mother tongue, obviously.
Q. What happens in your country with tennis? You have had very good players. Is
tennis more popular now?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: Yes. In my country, the main sport is football, and it's
going to remain like that. But now tennis with Marcelo, Nicolas, myself, has
now been more noticed. It's the second favorite sport in my country. I think
that gives a lot of satisfaction to my country.
Q. There is now a sport for the main class? I mean, because one time I was in
your country long ago, 30 years ago, and it was a "high-class game." Now it's
spreading more around, middle class are playing like in other countries or so?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: Yes. More and more, you have tennis courts all over the
place and you have stadiums with tennis courts that are owned by the
government, public places. You have more and more tennis players in the
country. I think that this is a very good thing because it's a healthy sport.
MODERATOR: Questions in Spanish.
Q. Aside from the fact that you're happy to have reached quarterfinals here in
the French Open, what made it possible in your game to reach such a level?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: Well, I must say that I feel better and better as the
tournament goes on. And at the end of the year I had a number of problems. I
was aching. I had a few difficult matches. I thought that I had to play
differently, and it really helped me.
Q. In Dusseldorf, you played eight singles matches. Do you feel tired? Do you
feel tired physically or mentally? Is the fact that you're winning helping you?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: Well, when you win, everything is fine and rosey. I had
enough time to recoup anyway. Matches were long; some of them were shorter.
During the first days, I must tell you it was difficult.
But I feel much better now. I feel fit and I'm able to go on.
Q. With Juan Carlos Ferrero, last time you played against him, he beat you very
convincingly. That was in the States. Is that going to make any difference in
the following match?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: I hope it's not going to be the same. It's true that Ferrero
played very well then and it will help him for the following match. But I beat
him twice last year.
So each match is different. You have to play the match from beginning to end,
and I'm sure it's going to be a big match for both of us.
Q. When you were practicing with Horacio, you said, "Oh, this is great." What
did you mean, the stadium or the court? And second question, a number of
players have said that the main courts are not similar. Today, after the rain,
it maybe felt a bit heavier and you had to change the tension of your racquet?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: Yes, it is huge, it's big, and you can see the people above
your head. That's one thing. But the court itself is bigger than the normal
court, so your bearings are different on central court.
So when I went into central court this morning, it's true that it was heavy.
After a bit of sunshine it changed.
Q. In the case of Ferrero this morning, he was telling us that on clay, he
feels very confident, that his tennis is a very complete game on clay. Last
year, when he was playing against you, we had the feeling that there were ups
and downs in his game. But now we have the feeling that when the situation is
difficult, Ferrero is really clinging to the match. What are you going to do,
facing him?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: Well, the results are there. We know that he is one of the
best on clay, and I have great respect for Ferrero as a clay courter.
But I'm confident for my game as well. I know I have great tennis in myself.
It's not so much speaking that matters, it's what you're going to play on the
court.
Q. You are in very good physical shape, you feel very fit. Is it good that you
had short matches? For instance, the match against Schalken, that gave you
optimal preparation to have such a short match?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: Yes, obviously it's much better to reach that level as I
did, rather than like Costa. Because each match is adding up to the previous
one - not only the length of the match but the tension as well.
My feeling is that both Juan Carlos and myself have had more or less the same
sort of previous matches, so it's going to be a good show for the public.
Q. In Dusseldorf, you remember this match that you played against Ferrero as
Juniors. Is that the sort of match that you have in mind against Ferrero here
in Roland Garros?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: Well, I don't want to look into the past too much. You
always have bad matches that you could remember, but you always suffer before
you win anyway. I'm really delighted to be able to play on the court like this
against people like Juan Carlos with a huge public. It's going to be a
magnificent experience.
Q. The other Chilean, Marcelo Rios, had loads of problem with the media and
people in general. What about you, do you have good contact with everybody?
Did you have problems with them in the past?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: Marcelo, I don't know, I can't talk for him. I know him well
. I can tell you that as far as I'm concerned, thank God I never had any
problems.
Q. You reached quarterfinals in the States on hard courts. You're going to do
the same here on clay, quarterfinals. What is the feeling that you have in
having those two experiences? Do you think the feel of tennis is different on
both surfaces, and are you now ready for this surface with all these
differences?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: To tell you the truth, the previous year I drew lessons that
will certainly be useful this year. I lost 7-5, but that gave me a lot of
experience, and I can draw the lessons from that. Whether you win or you lose,
we know it's going to be a very interesting experience, and I'll try my best to
win.
--
※ 發信站: 批踢踢實業坊(ptt.csie.ntu.edu.tw)
◆ From: 61.230.115.173