Interview kooyong

Kooyong Lawn Tennis Club

Wednesday, 10 January 2007

ANDY MURRAY

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Q. It was very warm for us. It was very chilly in Doha. How big of
a change was it?

A. When I was playing at night in Doha, it was about 14 or
15 degrees. I think it was about 35 today, so it was a big
change. But you've got to get used to it.
And this is why I think a lot of the guys play this
tournament, it's so close to the site, the courts are very
similar and it's good to get some matches in this sort of heat.
Because I think the other tournaments, like your Aucklands and
stuff, can be quite windy, and not as warm. Sydney, obviously,
is a little bit different, but you get used to the weather much
quicker if you're here earlier.

Q. Are you feeling 100 per cent at the moment?

A. Yes, I feel good. I'm still coughing a little bit but I feel
much better than I did last week. I think a few more days
practice and some matches in this heat, I'm going to be playing
well going into the Australian Open.

Q. How long have you had the cough, the splutter?

A. 11, 12 days.

Q. It won't go away, but do you feel okay?

A. I feel fine, I don't feel sick or anything, it's just annoying.
It's not too bad, it's just a little bit annoying. When I do a
little bit of running and when I'm sitting down and then I get up
quickly, I cough a little bit. But it's not too bad.
Q. What's the mindset -- this is an exhibition, no points; is it
purely a public practice session or do the matches mean
something?

A. I think the intensity is a little bit different than maybe a
normal practice session. You've obviously got people there so
you have to -- I feel like you have to perform. You know, it's
not fair if people are going to come out and watch you, and you
just go and put in a 50 per cent effort. You go and put the
effort in, but you might try some things you might not
necessarily do in a match. You know, it's not as stressful as
playing in a tournament, obviously, because the outcome doesn't
really matter that much. But it's still important.
If you're playing against guys like a Ljubicic, if I was to
go and play him in the Australian Open in the third round or
fourth round or whatever, you know, you don't necessarily want to
lose to them 6-1, 6-1, 6-1, 6-2, because mentally that gives them
a bit of an edge.

Q. If you had to pick on one thing, the one difference between the
Andy Murray sitting here in 2006 and the one who is here now,
what would it be?

A. You know, you guys don't put any pressure on me any more, so
that's the main difference.

Q. We don't?

A. You don't, yeah. I think I was complaining about that this time
last year. I think I've learned to deal with things better, and
I'm much stronger, not just physically but mentally as well.
I don't let things get to me as much. And also the work that
I've been doing off court, I just feel like I'm much more
balanced on the court, I'm not getting overpowered by guys that
are much bigger than me. And I think that I was a kid last year
still, you know, I was a bit immature on the court; now I'm
starting to grow up a little bit. So I feel much better than
I did this time last year, that's for sure.

Q. Is it fair to say at times the Rebound Ace was a bit of a puzzle
and, if so, do you think it's a puzzle that you've kind of
solved?

A. Yes, I'd never played on it before. A few people have been
saying the court is the same. I feel like -- maybe it's just
because I'd never played on it, last year it felt much different.
But the court feels nice to me, it feels quick, high bouncing,
you get a little bit more on your serve, the ball flies through
the air quicker. That might be because Doha was freezing last
week, I'm not sure, but I quite like the court. It's quite tough
to control the ball on the return, because it jumps off the kick
serve quite a lot and it comes through pretty fast on the serve.
So, yeah, I probably wasn't used to it last year and I feel
like this year it feels like a normal court, whereas last year
I didn't know what to expect.

Q. Given your game, the high bounce probably plays into your
strength, your serve, doesn't it?

A. Yes. I feel that on this court, when the weather is like this,
I can serve a lot of aces. You know, my kick serve gets up
pretty high. And the return is the best part of my game, so
I can control that better than some players.
But a lot of guys are used to this weather, I still wouldn't
say I'm used to it. You know, your South American players,
obviously the Australians as well, and the guys that have played
here eight or nine times. So I do feel like I can play well on
this surface. And I might not play my best this year, but the
more experience I get on it, I think this could be one of my best
surfaces.

Q. This time last year, a lot was made about the Australian Open,
the fact of the younger generation coming through. You didn't
start the Grand Slam particularly well, but obviously yourself
and Djokovic in particular have progressed since then. Does it
sort of irritate you -- that's the wrong word -- but do you have
a lot of banter about the fact of who's going to be the teenager
who's highest up?

A. We practised together this morning. It's not like -- I wouldn't
say that we were jealous of each other.

Q. Not that, but is there like a healthy rivalry between you?

A. I don't really know, I haven't thought about it. You know, we
sent each other a few messages over new year, Christmas time,
wishing each other good luck for the new year, hope it all goes
well. I spoke to him at the end of last year and he was saying,
"Next year I want to see both of us in the Masters Cup."
It's nice to have someone like that, who's kind of
supporting you, who's the same age, and I feel like the same with
him. We've known each other for such a long time, I wouldn't say
it's a healthy rivalry, it's just someone that I get on with and
I take an interest in him, he's a really nice guy, so I want the
best for him -- except when I'm playing against him, obviously!
So I wouldn't say there's any sort of rivalry between us.

Q. A year ago you played doubles with Jim. John Lloyd just told us
your brother is playing with Becker, so we assume you're not
playing doubles in the Grand Slam; is that correct?

A. Yes, no doubles at Grand Slams. I might play the occasional
Masters Series. But last year -- I still like playing doubles
sometimes; Doha was good because I hadn't played, obviously, any
matches and it's good to get your eye in on the returns and
stuff. Me and Jimmy beat the team that was in the Masters Cup
last year. It's also good for my brother as well when we play
together, because there's a chance we might play Davis Cup
together as well.
So it's -- it's something that I enjoy doing, but singles is
a priority. So come the Grand Slams, I don't want to be
having -- if it's a rainy day and you have to play singles, a
five-set singles match and then a three-set doubles match,
especially in this heat, there's no point.

Q. After the Australian Open, is he working his schedule around
where you're going to be?

A. Well, he was going to play doubles with Jamie Delgado for the
first few months of this year, but Delgado tore his calf, so
obviously they can't play together. It depends when he comes
back, what happens. But if we get into Indian Wells together,
I might play there with him, or maybe San Jose or whatever.
I might play some tournaments, but not -- maybe six, seven a
year, not like 10 to 14; like I think I played maybe 12 last
year.

Q. There was quite a sad occurrence in tennis today when Jimmy
Connors' mother passed away. She was a driving force, probably
the most famous tennis mum that ever was. She drove him to his
many titles. How would you describe your relationship with your
mum? Did she drive you --

A. (Andy shakes his head.)

Q. Apart from driving you in the car, but other than that?

A. No, no driving from my mum.

Q. No pressure from her?

A. I think, obviously, all parents are different and all children
respond differently to how their parents are. I'm grateful for
the way that my mum brought me up, and she never pushed me to
play tennis.
It wasn't like I didn't have a choice. I played a lot of
sports when I was growing up, and I made the decision at the end
of the day. And it wasn't like -- my mum was a tennis coach, but
she stopped coaching me when I was 11 years old, she didn't want
to do it any more. I think that was a good decision from her
because I'd hate to be in a situation where, you know -- I just
want my mum to be my mum, not have her teaching me how to make a
living. I wouldn't want her here and I'd feel pressure on our
relationship as a mother and a son. I'm just happy having it the
way that it is just now.
She's still involved behind the scenes with things that go
on off the court, and I'll speak to her once or twice a week
still. But it's not like she was the one driving me to play
tennis. She definitely never pushed me at all.

Q. Tim said he's coming back to Davis Cup. What are your thoughts
on that?

A. I think I've said, Tim being in the Davis Cup, it's great for me
personally: I've got a guy who's going to be able to play singles
and doubles, he's got a lot of experience and I get on great with
him. So in terms of the quality of the team, that takes us from
being a pretty average team to being a very, very good team,
possibly in the top 10 teams in the world, I think, so that's
great.
But I think everyone is saying that we need young guys to
come through and it's great that the guys get to spend time with
Tim at the Davis Cup and practise with him and see how he
prepares for matches and how he deals with the pressure and what
he's like in a Davis Cup situation, so hopefully that will help
them when they get the chance to play. But it's still completely
different sitting watching him, to actually playing one yourself,
and you only learn that through playing.
So hopefully the next few ties, like my brother might get a
chance to play -- I'm sure he's going to be a doubles player in
the future in Davis Cup, and some of the other young guys as
well, like Bogdanovic needs more experience too. So I think we
are potentially a very good team in the future but we need to see
what it's like when they actually play the matches.

Q. How much taller are you and how much heavier do you weigh than
you did a year ago?

A. I've seen on the ATP website I've been listed as 6'1", 150lb.
I don't know where they got that from. I'm about 6'3" and -- do
you want kilos?

Q. Pounds, in the old money?

A. I'm like 80kg, about 175lb, around there. I probably put on 2 or
3kg in the off season.

Q. What have you grown upwards in the last year?

A. I'm not sure. I know now that I'm around 6'2.5". I'm not sure
exactly how much I've grown from last year. I don't really
measure myself that often. Well, I don't keep a check on it.
I just know that I measured myself before I went on holidays
to Miami in November, I measured myself when I came back, and in,
like, a week and a half I grew 5mm, so I'm still growing a little
bit. But I think the amount of tennis that I play and stuff,
I think I'll probably stop pretty soon.