AUSTRALIAN OPEN
Date: 2007-01-15

AUSTRALIAN OPEN

January 15, 2007

Marcos Baghdatis
MELBOURNE, VICTORIA
The Moderator First question, please.

Question Marcos, a tougher match than the scores indicated. Are you happy with the way it all turned out?
MARCOS BAGHDATIS: I'm happy, of course. I won. It was not a great match. I was a bit tight in the beginning coming in the match, thinking too much and wasn't serving so well, and wasn't feeling good on the court. I'm happy I went through, of course, and that's all.

Question What do you mean by thinking too much? Thinking about your opponent or thinking about other things?
MARCOS BAGHDATIS: Other things.

Question Why would you do that?
MARCOS BAGHDATIS: I don't know, a lot of things. I'm just thinking because all the pressure and stuff. I mean, I went through, and I will get myself ready for the next match.

Question The fact that he was a finalist here in 2003, did that play on your mind a bit?
MARCOS BAGHDATIS: No, it was just me thinking.

Question You had no problems from the injury you picked up in Sydney?
MARCOS BAGHDATIS: No, no problems, no.

Question How did you feel the crowd were today? Were they up to your usual standards and pushing you on and encouraging you all the way?
MARCOS BAGHDATIS: It was nice. It was nice getting back again, feeling the crowd. They were good. They were okay.

Question Do you feel that there's pressure on you to try and live up to what you achieved last year?
MARCOS BAGHDATIS: Yeah. Yeah, there's a lot of pressure. Not by media or stuff, it's more like my group and stuff. I feel a bit of pressure from them.
My father is here. You know, that changes things. I will just try to deal with it and try to speak to them and find a way.

Question Were you able to block out the expectations, or is it a problem?
MARCOS BAGHDATIS: Yeah, I think I'll do that and -- now I know how I feel. I know what went wrong, and I can adjust and do things right.

Question Have you looked ahead to your next match?
MARCOS BAGHDATIS: No, not yet. I just finished.

Question Have you seen who it is?
MARCOS BAGHDATIS: I heard Monfils.

Question Yeah. Any thoughts on that?
MARCOS BAGHDATIS: Yeah. He's a great player. He's playing really good. He's physically ready and has a great physique and he's a great fighter.
Just speak with my coach tonight and maybe tomorrow and see how it goes on the court.

Question When you were with the crowd, did you have a feeling it was a new tournament, or did you feel it was a continuation of the last one in 2006?
MARCOS BAGHDATIS: It was a new one.

Question And which are your goals now?
MARCOS BAGHDATIS: I just try to do my best every match. Just try to fight, just try to give my best, and I cannot promise winning or going somewhere. I'll just try to do my best.

Question If the pressure becomes a little too great -- and you talked about the pressure before -- would you change something in your routine these next two weeks? Take more time out for yourself? Take more privacy?
MARCOS BAGHDATIS: Maybe, yeah, more privacy, that's for sure.

Question Have you made your mind up what you're going to do to correct it?
MARCOS BAGHDATIS: I'll speak with my team, my coach, my father and stuff, and just find a way. There's nothing wrong. There's nothing --

Question You look troubled, though.
MARCOS BAGHDATIS: No, no, no. No, I'm not. I'm happy (laughter). Nothing is wrong.

Question Where is the smile?
MARCOS BAGHDATIS: Yeah, I don't know. I don't know. It's tough.

Question Was today tougher than you thought it might be out there?
MARCOS BAGHDATIS: Every match is tough.

Question More than you did when you walked out of the locker room today?
MARCOS BAGHDATIS: I was waiting -- the reaction of me for sure. I was waiting to feel bad on court. I was waiting for that. Just going on the court feeling bad makes it -- not worse, but like I said, I'm very happy that I found a solution.
Rainer was injured, okay, that's for sure. I'm just happy I went through. I don't know, I just hope to find my feet, take the pressure off my feet and just feel better, because in practice I'm just playing very good.
Now I feel the ball very good in practice. And just today I was not there. I was just -- the mind, the feet, everything was like somewhere else.

Question You were hitting it pretty well in Sydney last week, weren't you?
MARCOS BAGHDATIS: I was playing very good even here last three days, playing very good. It's a matter of the tennis here, the physicalness here. It's just a matter of how the mind to find a way to be cool, calm, and -- yes.

Question You say that the pressure is coming from inside your team. Why is that?
MARCOS BAGHDATIS: I don't know, changes. A lot of changes have happened. I mean, I don't feel very good. Just don't feel very good with my father is here, my brother is here, everybody is here.
It's not like a normal tournament for me, and that's all. It's like a different tournament and I'm not used to it. I have to just find my way.

Question Does your father think he knows a lot about tennis?
MARCOS BAGHDATIS: He does. He does, yeah. He's the one who brought me here, so he does.

Question Is that a problem sometimes?
MARCOS BAGHDATIS: Problem, no, it's not a problem. You know, it's nothing against my father, it's just -- it's nothing on court. It's nothing I'm watching him. He's here. It's just off the court it's not the same. I don't have the same routines with my coach and stuff.
It's not in the court, it's just out of the court. I'm not happy. I'm not myself, so that's all.

Question You're not afraid if you don't play well he'll send you to bed without supper?
MARCOS BAGHDATIS: Sorry?

Question You're not feeling that if you don't play well he'll send you to bed without supper?
MARCOS BAGHDATIS: No. He doesn't care if I play well or not. The most important thing is not a tennis match. There are more important things than a tennis match, losing a tennis match or winning a tennis match. I'm here and I want to win it. I'm just trying to find the best way to feel good.

Question Does it feel strange playing in front of him?
MARCOS BAGHDATIS: No. I just said it's not that he's -- it's not my father, it's the whole group. Just forget about it.

Question We see a wonderful photo from Sydney. You and Mauresmo playing cards in the tournament, and you are the two finalists of last year here. Was there something funny about this final? Can you say what you are laughing about?
MARCOS BAGHDATIS: I don't understand the question.

Question We received a photo from Sydney, and you were laughing with Mauresmo.
MARCOS BAGHDATIS: I was playing cards with her.

Question Just as if something was funny about the final or about --
The Moderator What were you laughing about?
MARCOS BAGHDATIS: I don't remember.

Question What happened against Carlos in Sydney? It looked like you had that match. How do you see it in your own mind? What happened?
MARCOS BAGHDATIS: He played good. I mean, I was serving for the match, 5-4. There was one bad call. I have to say it (laughter). The first point was a bad call, really bad call. But it happens.
And then it's not the same thing starting 15-Love up and Love-15, and then I won the two points and he played good and he broke me with a fantastic lob, a beautiful lob.
I couldn't do anything about that, and he was just playing very good. He was continuing to play very good, very aggressive, and I just didn't find a way to win. He was better than me all day.

Question Could you give us a summary of your thoughts on today's match in your native tongue?
MARCOS BAGHDATIS: (Answer in Greek.)