Andy Murray Interview - French Open, May 28

Andy Murray Interview
French Open
Friday, May 28, 2010

Q. Could you please explain what happened in the third set, the circumstances?
ANDY MURRAY: I mean, I didn't play a very good set. That was it. That's all that happened. I didn't play well. Made mistakes. He hit the ball well, and that was it.
I played a bad set, but I try and focus on I'll try and focus on the rest of the match, which I thought was very good.

Q. The first two sets you really came out firing. What was the key to that?
ANDY MURRAY: Well, the start of the match actually wasn't particularly great. Both of us had a lot of mistakes, pretty yeah, both of us, I don't know, were a little bit subdued, maybe. It could have been, you know, because of a few late finishes and long days. Like I said, sometimes that happens.
But once I got the break in the first set I started playing some really good tennis for a couple of sets, and finished really well at the end.

Q. Was possibly the third set something that you started to feel it in your legs what had happened the previous few days?
ANDY MURRAY: No. Legs felt fine. I just got off to a bad start and got broken a couple of times. You know, it's not like you're not trying. You know, it's just that there's a good chance that a double break down, you're a couple sets up, that you want to make sure that you're fresh right to the end of the match.
You know, I conserved a little bit of energy at the end. I went for more than normal; made a few more mistakes at the end of the set. And then once I got back in at the beginning of the fourth set, once I got the break back, I started hitting the ball a lot better. He's a difficult guy to play against because he's a great shot maker and very unpredictable. You need to be focused all the time, and I wasn't in the third set.

Q. How pleasing was it to still get off court in two and a half hours when you take into account your first match obviously the second one was over two days. Is it quite pleasing to get off court without too many dramas?
ANDY MURRAY: Yeah, I mean, the shortest match so far. You know, it started clouding over a few times. It was actually Jonathan Overton I don't know if he's here he told me it was meant to rain today. So I thought maybe we're gonna be in for a long day, and it didn't. (laughter.)
So I thought it got a little bit dark. But, yeah, I was glad to get off the court quickly.

Q. What do you make of your match in the fourth round?
ANDY MURRAY: Well, I haven't actually played Berdych for ages. I think I might have only played him once or twice on the tour. I think I played him when I was very young in Basel, yeah. I have no idea of the other time when I played him. Where?

Q. Adelaide.
ANDY MURRAY: Oh, okay, yeah. So, yeah, I have not played him for a long time.
He's had some good results this year in Miami. He played well in Monte Carlo. He had some good ones there. He obviously beat Isner pretty comfortably today, so it's gonna be tough.

Q. You said yesterday that when you went a break down in the third, I think, that's when you kind of really got going and moved ahead. You went down a break again in the fourth. Was it the same story today?
ANDY MURRAY: It was a little bit different. You know, I was playing very well and then lost my way a little bit.
The game where I managed to break back, it was just a matter of sort of hustling, fighting, putting a lot of balls in the court. He made a few mistakes, and the match kind of swung again back in my favor.
It was a little bit different circumstances to yesterday where, you know, when I went behind, started going for my shots a bit more and just, yeah, loosened up; whereas today I had to fight a little bit more to find my rhythm.

Q. You've played three days in a row now. How are you feeling? I know you're looking forward to a break.
ANDY MURRAY: Yeah. I mean, it's tough sometimes. It happens in slams. You just need to deal with it. But, yeah, I'll be fine, I'm sure, for the next match. Yeah, I look forward to the day off. I'll practice for 45 minutes or so and just rest up.

Q. It's the second year you're through to the second week at Roland Garros. Can you compare how you're feeling this year to last year when you got to the quarterfinals?
ANDY MURRAY: I mean, I feel fine just now. It's obviously been I had a couple of long matches; whereas last year I think a only dropped one set to get to the quarters maybe. I spent more time on court.
I feel okay, and sometimes that can be a good thing. You know, from the back of the court and I'm hitting ball a lot cleaner than maybe I was last year.
But, you know, I feel good and ready to fight the next round.

Q. There have been quite a lot of people in the UK perhaps not familiar with Berdych. What are some of the main challenges in tackling him?
ANDY MURRAY: He's big guy with a big serve. He hits the ball hard and flat. He takes a lot of risk. He plays, I mean, low percentage tennis maybe. But that's how he's always played.
He doesn't feel uncomfortable going for his shots, so you don't probably have to run a lot. He's got a big serve, so he's a tough guy to break. So I need to return well, and, you know, that's kind of it. He's got a big game.

Q. Although you've said consistently that you think the French is the Grand Slam where you've got the least chance of winning, are you sort of actually quietly enjoying this championship and the ups and downs of how you've got this far and relishing the prospect of the second week here?
ANDY MURRAY: Yeah, I mean, I enjoy it as a tournament. I always loved to play on clay when I was younger. I've said it many times it's my favorite surface to play on, even though my results haven't been as good.
You know, I feel like I can play well on clay, play very well on clay. It just takes me a bit more time to get used to the surface again. You know, I love the tournament. It's probably the hardest physically to win, you know, because obviously a lot of long rallies, long points, and long matches.
Yeah, I enjoy coming here, and it's very different to me than at the other Slams where, you know, I'm a lot more sure of myself there just because I know how to move well and how to play properly on those courts.

Q. In that sense, although the opposition is challenging, are you challenging yourself almost more on this than any other surface?
ANDY MURRAY: No. I mean, it just is more of a challenge for me because I don't play many tournaments on the surface and hardly played on a clay court until I was 15.
So, you know, it's not something that comes naturally to me. So, you know, I obviously have to work hard on my game. I need to put hours in on the practice court. You know, I still do that on the other courts.
It's just my game style is a little bit more natural on hardcourts and grass and indoors. But I'm playing good. I played really well here last year, and I've had I think three very, very good wins against tough players.

Q. With your Michael Jackson impersonation having been on French TV, what sort of feedback have you had from your mates back home who have seen you on the Internet?
ANDY MURRAY: I actually haven't had any feedback from it at all, no, but I kind of made up my own mind what it was like. I saw the video. They replayed it after I did it, so I know what to expect.

Q. Is it something you'd maybe like to see in England? Obviously this thing happens in France every year where fans are able to see another side of players. Do you think...
ANDY MURRAY: I'd rather they didn't see that side of us, to be honest. (laughter.)
No, I mean, it's fun. Like I said yesterday, I mean, all the players, they're totally normal, cool, nice guys. It's just you know, it can be difficult, because, you know, you only really see us when we're on the court, and, you know, you're answering, you know, questions about the matches all the time.
Yeah, I think those sort of things are good for the sport, you know, good for the players to do. Yeah, if it makes it if the fans enjoy it and they like watching it, then why not?