WIMBLEDON
Date: 2003-07-05

WIMBLEDON

July 5, 2003

Mark Philippoussis
WIMBLEDON, ENGLAND
MODERATOR: Mark Philippoussis. We're going to limit the questions to 10 minutes, just to be fair to both finalists.

Question How are you feeling today?
Mark Philippoussis Feeling pretty good, pretty relaxed. It's a nice day just to get a bit of a hit in and get the body ready for tomorrow.

Question Did you sleep all right last night?
Mark Philippoussis Yeah, slept great.

Question You reckon you'll sleep as well tonight?
Mark Philippoussis Yeah, I think I will. I think I will. I feel pretty relaxed. So, yeah, the good thing is I've been through a Grand Slam final in 1998, so it's not gonna be new for me. So I can definitely, you know, use the experience back then for tomorrow.

Question Can you talk a bit about yourself as a person and how you are different now from the guy that went out against Rafter in '98?
Mark Philippoussis Well, a lot of things have happened since then. I'm definitely a lot more mature person - on and off the court. And, you know, I'm definitely a lot more prepared, I think, this time. I think back then, I was just, you know, obviously so pleased, being my first Grand Slam final and being a lot younger. You know, everything was new, and I was extremely nervous for that final then, especially, you know, playing against Pat, who is also an Australian. That was also tough for me. Obviously, both of us wanted to win. And then it's really tough to get pumped up really when you're playing someone from your own country.

Question Does that mean you won't be as satisfied with just getting to the final as you were five years ago?
Mark Philippoussis Exactly, yeah.

Question You've obviously still got a lot of work to do, but do you see what's happened here over the past couple of weeks, do you see it as a potentially life-changing or career-changing thing?
Mark Philippoussis Oh, definitely. A lot of things are going to change for me. And people are going to be expecting things from me; I'm going to be expecting things from myself. This is a big step forward for me as a tennis player, but also as a person off the court. So I'll have a lot of pluses.

Question You said you've matured since '98. Do you feel prepared to handle the extra things that will come your way now, sort of the media and the sponsors and all of that?
Mark Philippoussis Yes, I think I will be, definitely.

Question In what way?
Mark Philippoussis You know, I think, you know, after all those years of fighting to get back up, you know, it's not a bad thing to have the sponsors asking things from you. It means you're doing something right, it means they want you, it means people want to see you. And that's a good thing, it's a very positive thing, and that's something that I'll be looking forward to embracing.

Question Some of the people around you, they say you're a pretty shy guy in terms of the cameras. Do you feel that about yourself? Do you feel like you're better at handling that than you might have been in the past?
Mark Philippoussis I'm still shy. I mean, I like to keep to myself. I'm a very private person off the court. Whatever I do off the court, whether it be me with my family or friends, is strictly confidential and just about me. And, you know, on the tennis court, I understand that, you know, once you get on the court, it feels like, you know, my stage, you know. I'm not nervous. I'm not shy. And, you know, I do what I do and just go out there and have fun, enjoy myself.

Question Financially, obviously, this is going to be big for you, I mean, no matter what. Is that something you think of? Do you leave that to someone else?
Mark Philippoussis Not at all. Not at all. I don't know if I'm going to leave it to someone else because now, the more mature I am, the more I want to take care of things myself, and have more things coming to me, and knowing what's happening, than in the past where I didn't want to know about that. And my dad took care of that stuff, and I just, you know, am wanting to learn more about that stuff and take care of it more myself. Of course my dad's still gonna be there, you know, telling me what he thinks and just explaining everything to me, like a dad should, you know. Obviously, he wants the best thing for me. But at the end of the day, it's my decision.

Question Was there a very low point at the height of the knee problems where you would have thought, "There's no way I'll ever get back into a Grand Slam final," or where you might have dreamed of this kind of thing?
Mark Philippoussis No, there's no point where I'd say I would've never thought -- I always knew what I was capable of doing. The only thing I did know, that it was gonna be a long way back and I was going to have to work extremely hard on and off the court and make sacrifices. And it's just paid off.

Question Where did the turning point happen? Where did it click where you thought, "I'm really on the way back now"?
Mark Philippoussis This year, I felt like I was playing some good tennis in the, you know -- made the final of Scottsdale, and I was close in, you know, a three-setter against Andre in Miami. But I think after that, my match against -- first match against Jonas in Davis Cup, you know, I just felt like a different person. I was a lot more confident. After that match, I knew I was just playing better and better. You know, I didn't play too bad in the clay court season, seeing as though I pretty much only played three tournaments. I played Italian Open, I qualified and lost to Ferrero first round; made the quarters in Hamburg and lost to Moya. So, you know, I didn't really do too bad for those clay court tournaments considering I only played three of them.

Question There was a lot of media interest this morning on what the words on the plasters mean. I was wondering if you're prepared now to put us out of our misery. Everybody's speculating. Maybe after you win tomorrow, you could sort of let us know?
Mark Philippoussis Maybe after tomorrow I could let you know, yeah (smiling).

Question Maybe a little hint now?
Mark Philippoussis No, no.

Question Do you feel you're a man of destiny, and does that phrase have any significance for you?
Mark Philippoussis I think, you know, as I said before, everything in life happens for a reason. You know, sometimes I could sit down and when I was -- after my third surgery and say, "You know what, I've been so unlucky, you know, in my tennis life." Because personally, I'm a very lucky person. I have a family who loves me. They're healthy, and so I'm blessed. But on the tennis side, I felt like I was a little unlucky and, you know, just felt like, "When's the luck gonna come my side?" But then I thought about it, and that's like the wrong approach to have. You've got to make your own luck. That's just the way I've been thinking about it. I've been working hard. You can't just sit around, expect things to happen. You've got to make them happen. So I definitely say, you know, people are in charge of making their own destiny.

Question How important is it for you tomorrow to get the crowd on your side? Do you hope to be the crowd's favorite tomorrow?
Mark Philippoussis No, no. They're gonna just enjoy the final. They're gonna be very fair, I'm sure. I'm sure they enjoy watching both of us, Roger and myself. I guess we're not too boring watching. You know, he is very flashy, he's extremely talented, he can do everything on the court. And, you know, I'd like to think I'm pretty exciting to watch, too. So I think they're gonna be very fair. So, you know, being a final, they're just gonna enjoy it, I think, and just, you know, clap for both of us.

Question Can you tell us your most inspiring message or word of support you've had from friend or colleague since the semi?
Mark Philippoussis To be -- I don't know. I mean, to be quite honest, no one's, you know -- they've just said -- I mean, everyone knows the way I'm playing, it just speaks for itself. There's nothing much you can say to pump me up more than you need to. I know what it's all about, and I know what I've done to get here. So I don't really need -- you know, feel like I need some inspiring words to get me pumped.

Question What's happened here so far, has that raised your expectations for the rest of the year? I know you've taken it very much one match at a time. You've said you just want to stay healthy, but...
Mark Philippoussis Oh, of course. I mean, pretty much my only points were in the Round of 16 for Wimbledon, and then I think I won like one match in the summertime, hurt myself in the US Open. I didn't have the year off. So I've had one -- I've got one match to win. That's the only points I have. So it's a big opportunity for me, there's no doubt about that. But, you know, I've got the whole year to go.

Question Are you thinking Top 10 or anything like that?
Mark Philippoussis I'm not thinking that at all. The only thing I'm thinking about is for tomorrow .

Question You're talking about how calm you're feeling. Is it coming from inside, or are you having to mentally work on yourself to stay calm and relaxed?
Mark Philippoussis Honestly, it's coming from the inside. I was shocked at how relaxed I was yesterday on the court and before and after, so...

Question You're not doing anything differently or you're not consciously doing anything to keep you so...
Mark Philippoussis Honestly, I'm not. I'm going back to the house, I'm getting a massage, I'm not even talking about tennis. I'm watching movies, talking about other things, just talking to friends on the phone, just mucking around. I'm just thinking about the tennis once I walk over here and getting ready for my practice or the match.

Question What movies are you going to watch tonight?
Mark Philippoussis I don't know. Unfortunately, I'm a movie buff, so I've seen pretty much everything there is to see.

Question What sort of genre do you like? What sort of movies do you like?
Mark Philippoussis I definitely love my action. So, I don't know, there's a lot of movies I like. It's -- depending, you know, I have my favorite actors and stuff.

Question What are your favorite actors?
Mark Philippoussis Mel Gibson would have to be one. Nicholas Cage, Al Pacino, Robert DeNiro. What's that Australian actor's name who's doing well?

Question Russell Crowe.
Mark Philippoussis Russell Crowe, but the guy from X-Men 2.

Question Hugh Jackman.
Mark Philippoussis Yeah, I mean, I'm really impressed with him. For comedians, Jim Carrey, and I really like Matthew Perry. God, there's so many great actors.

Question Has he been in touch with you? He's been watching your matches.
Mark Philippoussis Yeah, yeah, we speak sometimes.

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