WIMBLEDON
Date: 2003-07-06

WIMBLEDON

July 6, 2003

Mark Philippoussis
WIMBLEDON, ENGLAND
MODERATOR: Mark Philippoussis for you.

Question Obviously, a great achievement. A little disappointment.
Mark Philippoussis Yeah, obviously, you know, there's a lot of positive things I can take away. You know, it's been a great tournament for me. But, unfortunately, I fell one short. But I'll be back.

Question He played extremely well, though, didn't he?
Mark Philippoussis He did play extremely well, yeah. He definitely played better than me on the day. You know, that first tiebreaker was huge, to get the momentum going. And, you know, I was up a mini break in that 4-3, I missed a forehand and double-faulted. You know, costed me the first tiebreaker.

Question Was that as good as you've ever seen him play?
Mark Philippoussis I don't know. I think he played well today. I don't know if, you know -- I haven't watched a lot of his matches, but I thought he played well today.

Question You didn't play that badly yourself, did you, really?
Mark Philippoussis I mean, wouldn't say it was my best match out there. So, you know, definitely played better.

Question The forehand and the double-fault, how much did you think about that beyond that tiebreak?
Mark Philippoussis No, I mean once that set was over, you know, I thought about the next set and, you know, I just pressed a little and I guess pressed too much. But there are things I'm gonna learn from and things I have to work on, so...

Question As far as nerves are concerned, is it a little easier to play a second Grand Slam final than the first one?
Mark Philippoussis I felt pretty good. I wasn't too nervous, to be quite honest. I felt pretty good out there.

Question Television said you looked led-footed during the match?
Mark Philippoussis I looked what?

Question You didn't have any spring in your step. You just didn't seem to be able to move around the court like we were expecting you to.
Mark Philippoussis I don't know what I looked like from the TV, but I didn't feel too bad at all. I don't know what I looked like, so...

Question You said you didn't think you played your best today. What do you put that down to?
Mark Philippoussis Well, you know, my first serve percentage wasn't that high. You know, I wasn't returning as well as I wanted to. But, you know, I think that, you know, that first set was big. I think whoever won that first set was gonna go on a roll and the other person was -- gonna get a lot more confident. Obviously, the other person would be a lot more down. It definitely gets the momentum going. That's what happened after the first set.

Question How long did it take you to stop being down?
Mark Philippoussis I can't really say I did much wrong. Definitely, your first serves, when they go, they help. But he came up with some great passing shots, running forehand, backhand returns. You know, what can you do?

Question Do you think he's the sort of player that can maybe come back here and dominate for years to come?
Mark Philippoussis I don't know if he's gonna, you know, dominate. He's definitely a great player. There's a lot of great players out there. So as far as someone dominating the game, you know, I don't think that will happen. There's a lot of great players out there.

Question To be so close, Mark, in the first set and to get nothing from it, how did that affect you mentally for the second set?
Mark Philippoussis It was a little disappointing, but, you know, I've lost the first set before. I've lost the first two sets and, you know, I'm never gonna give up. Obviously, it's a little disappointing, but you forget about it and you think about what's ahead of you.

Question That's no reason why it just seemed to fall away from you in the second set? No reaction to the first set?
Mark Philippoussis No, it was no reaction. He came out and just was on momentum from the first set and it just showed, I think.

Question What was the whole experience like, playing a Wimbledon final?
Mark Philippoussis It was definitely something that's gonna help me in the future. So, you know, Goran was in the final three times before he won it. So, you know, I'm never gonna give up. Obviously, I'm disappointed, but there's a lot of positive things I can take away. And I'm definitely gonna hold that trophy up before I retire. That's for sure.

Question What are the positives that you're going to take away?
Mark Philippoussis Well, I mean, there's a lot of things. For the two weeks, you know, the match against Andre, two sets to love down against Popp, breakpoint down to be in the fifth, you know, there's a lot of positive things. You know, I -- you know, I've been working really hard to get here, and this is just the beginning for me. You know, I'm only gonna be keener and eager after what happened today and more pumped up. It's not like -- sure, I'm gonna have a bit of a time off, but I think, to be quite honest, as soon as I get back, I'll be looking forward to getting into my fitness, just getting stronger, looking forward to the American summer.

Question You've talked about how family is more important than tennis. You're real close with your dad, who must have been very proud of you for the run despite today's loss. What did your dad say to you?
Mark Philippoussis He just said, "This is just the beginning. I mean, look where you were 18 months ago." A year ago I was struggling to get into tournaments. Now, you know, this is just the start of many things to come.

Question You mentioned Goran. Has he been a little bit of an inspiration for you in the way that he eventually won Wimbledon? Might he still be an inspiration in that way?
Mark Philippoussis I think he is. He's definitely an inspiration to a lot of guys. I mean, you definitely have to feel for the guy. Someone who's been in the final three times. I guess you'd have to say it's almost like destiny he had to win it before he retired. You can't really say that someone deserves to win more than anyone else because everyone works extremely hard and everyone wants to win, but if there was one person that you'd say that does deserve a tournament, it would be him with this tournament.

Question One day that might happen to you.
Mark Philippoussis Uhm, you know, I'm definitely gonna come back and I'm gonna be a lot stronger. That's for sure.

Question Has this made you more determined?
Mark Philippoussis Yes, definitely. Definitely more determined. It's not easy sitting back and looking at your opponent holding up the cup and the trophy. It's definitely made me more determined.

Question You said there were a lot of great players out there. Given that you played well, very well today in many respects, but in the first set, are there many as complete as Federer in terms of different aspects of their game, in terms of weak points? What do you think about the width of his game?
Mark Philippoussis Well, he's a talented player. Obviously, he, you know, is very talented. He can do everything. On the court, he's comfortable with serve and volleying, as he showed today. So simple, you know, when you have a great day, everything looks great, everything's perfect. So he definitely deserved today.

Question What can you take out of this match for playing Davis Cup against Switzerland? I know it's a long way away. But do you think it will give you an advantage, having seen him up close like that?
Mark Philippoussis I'm definitely not looking -- even thinking about that.

Question What are the immediate plans? What do you do now? Days off?
Mark Philippoussis I'm just gonna go back to San Diego and just go surfing. That's all I'll think about.

Question You don't want to tell us anything more about the plaster and the words?
Mark Philippoussis No, you guys were close, but not close enough (laughter).

Question Were you aware of your support out on Henman Hill or Mount Philippoussis?
Mark Philippoussis Yeah, I heard about that. That's great. I wish I could have given them something a little more to yell about. I'm sure they've had some beers. They'd have been happy enough.

Question I take it, it's a long board you'll be surfing in the States?
Mark Philippoussis No, sorry, I'm a short boarder, yeah.

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