Federer: "I've put 2002 behind me"
By Georges Homsi
Friday, May 23, 2003
Roger Federer is one of the pre-tournament favourites at this year's French
Open, even more so now that the draw has been announced. The Swiss star has
yet to fulfil his potential in a Grand Slam event though, most notably at
Roland-Garros where he crashed out to Hicham Arazi last year. We caught up
with him courtside and found him in relaxed form, unconcerned about last
year's disappointment and relishing the challenge ahead.
What have you been up to since your defeat to Philippoussis in Hamburg last
week?I went home and took it easy for a few days. Then I started training,
beginning with fitness work on Tuesday, before picking up my racket again on
Wednesday. I came to Paris on Thursday, so this is my third day of practice.
I need a bit of time to get used to the balls here; they're a bit soft and
tend to fly off the racket a bit. But I'm getting there.
Were you tired in Hamburg after your exertions over the previous two and a
half weeks (winning in Munich and getting to the final in Rome)?
No, not really. I thought I would be, because after Rome I was really tired.
I only got in one day's rest while I was travelling to Hamburg. But I won my
first two matches against Max (Mirnyi) and Sargsian easily so I had time to
recover.
Aren't you a bit surprised by your performances on clay?
No, not surprised. I must admit I didn't think I'd feel so good quite so
quickly. When you start out you don't know what to expect. To win a
tournament was great, and I carried it on to get to the final of the
next one.
You're up against Luis Horna in your first match at Roland-Garros. How
will you approach that one?It's going to be tough. He makes you hit a lot of
balls so you have to be patient and adopt the right strategy. I played him in
the first round in Miami, and it was a hard match, even if I won in two sets.
On clay he might be even harder to beat.
I imagine you'll be wanting to make up for the disappointment of Roland Garros
2002…No - you know I wasn't hugely disappointed last year. Arazi is a tough
guy to play and maybe I was a bit tired after winning in Hamburg. Losing to
Ancic in the first round at Wimbledon was much more disappointing because I
played badly and employed the wrong tactics. Arazi performed superbly and
deserved to win. Having said that, I hope to fare better this time around.
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