Roger Federer

March 20, 2007

Roger Federer

KEY BISCAYNE, FLORIDA

THE MODERATOR: Questions for Roger, please.

Q. Talk about what happened at Indian Wells? Was that a blessing in disguise, do you think?
ROGER FEDERER: Well, there's definitely good things about it. I mean, not finally, but some unexpected time off. I've always been on the verge of just trying to get my plans sorted out just as good as I could, you know, and all of a sudden this was the first time in many years where I've had a week.
I didn't know what I was going to do. So I had time to take another rest, you know, and enough time for leisure and also to practice. I got here early. I don't know if that's going to pay off, but, yeah, it's going to be interesting to see my reaction here. I hope I can play well.

Q. You obviously don't want to lose a run, but does it take pressure off you?
ROGER FEDERER: Not really. I think there's more pressure when it comes to losing. The next tournament, if you come back on the winning side again -- you know, when you lost you're just on the loser's side and it happens most of the times.
I would prefer to be on streaks obviously because it keeps you going, and the pressure from all the streaks and stuff, I don't feel it to be honest because I take every match at a time.

Q. What do you think about the Latin American players at this point? Do you understand there are two Chileans and Argentinians.
ROGER FEDERER: The South American players over the last few years have always been tough to beat and have really come along very strong, especially since Nalbandian and Coria came in.
They're the same age as me. They've really led a great group of guys, and then Gaudio won the French Open, as well. So the Argentinians have been very strong. But also Chileans came, and the Olympic medals of Massu and Gonzalez and the Australian Open finals with Fernando.
Of course Kuerten and probably Rios were the first ones to probably start that trend. They're tough to play. You know, they're such great competitors and athletes and great players from the baseline so they can play on all the surfaces now that the hard court is slowed down.
Yeah, it's fun that we have different players from different continents. Now I think the only ones that's really missing is Africa and Asia.

Q. Did you watch Indian Wells last week?
ROGER FEDERER: A little bit.

Q. Did you watch the finals?
ROGER FEDERER: A couple games I saw. I was practicing.

Q. Was the streak a disappointment? You were very close and we really all thought you were going to make it.
ROGER FEDERER: Well, it would have been nice, but that wasn't my goal before the tournament. I was hoping to win a few rounds and hopefully get into the tournament and try to defend in the end.
I thought defending the title was more important than beating the streak, even though it went hand in hand at that point. It's just disappointing to lose a tournament. It was a strange loss I have. I thought I played okay, but I came from a quicker court in Dubai so maybe I was struggling getting onto the slow stuff, and really wanted to play the next match.
Then getting the blister and the problems with the tape and those delays really kind of messed my rhythm up and I couldn't get back into the match. By the time I felt more relaxed again it was already 5-2 double break down, and it was just too late. He closed it out nicely so I've got to give him credit, that's for sure.

Q. What is it about the Key that makes all the best players come out and makes it the fifth major of the season?
ROGER FEDERER: I guess you've got to go back in history. Matches were played here best-of-five sets back in the day from the first round on. They really tried to push hard to make it become the fifth major. I guess there will never be a fifth major, but it was always considered a tournament where everybody comes.
It's in a long stretch before the Australian Open and the French Open. There's no Grand Slams for a while, so Miami fits in perfectly. They've always had these great stadiums here, and the fields have always been bigger than other tournaments. I don't know how many players here, 96 players or something in the main draw. So it just makes it a big tournament.
You have many players, men's and women's the same week, like a Grand Slam, and that's why it's considered one of the big events to win on tour.

Q. When you're not playing tennis what will you be doing in Miami when you're not practicing and playing?
ROGER FEDERER: I like to go shopping here, walk around South Beach a little bit, enjoy just the crowd over there. I think it's really kind of nice to get there. Yeah, nice restaurants here and there.
Going to take it easy, go to the beach, as well, so there's nice things to do.

Q. Are you going to make any change in your game plan for this tournament?
ROGER FEDERER: Well, I guess so, yeah, because I had so much time off. I had over 12 days of time basically to get ready from one to the next tournament. Last few years every time I've come with a win from Indian Wells here to Miami, so the preparation is definitely different.
I don't know if it's going to help me right away, but I think in the long run I will definitely have no problems with energy towards the end of the year because I haven't played much this season yet. So for me it will definitely be good to get more matches here in Miami.

Q. For you the unscheduled break, was it more helpful mentally or physically?
ROGER FEDERER: It's not like I needed a break because I didn't play so much this year. You have to look at it in the long run. In the season it's always good to get rest, especially looking ahead with Miami and then the whole clay court and grass court season is really intense and tough.
I only get a handful of days off until after Wimbledon, so it's going to be really difficult, except, of course, if I really lose first round at the French Open. That's not really my goal. Been preparing for that for quite some time. I look at it as a little bit of a positive side.
Mentally and physically I didn't need a rest, so it was just extra days off.

Q. Will you talk specifically about Fernando Gonzalez and what is it about his game that makes him so difficult?
ROGER FEDERER: Well, I've known him for a long time. I've known him since 14, 15 years old and I've played junior tournaments with him back then already. He was a year older, but I became junior world champion playing in his age group. He was in the semis here actually at the Orange Bowl and he lost to Coria in the semis. I beat Nalbandian in the semis.
I never played Fernando actually that year. He won the Junior French, I won Junior Wimbledon in the same year.
Now on tour it's been great how he came along, especially the last couple years. He's been able to improve his game. He didn't come overnight. It was a hard work in progress for him. His form was always dangerous and his backhand is steady.
He's now got the experience, so he's a very tough player to beat and he can upset any top player, even himself, can move very close to the very top soon, I think.

Q. Part of the attraction here is you and Tiger playing the same weekend. Who do you think is more dominant in their sport, you or Tiger?
ROGER FEDERER: I would guess there's a lot of speculation, but I think we're the last two guys who care about that (laughing).
I mean, it's nice to -- I think to be compared outside of the sport for me, for him maybe, as well, a little bit. What he's been able to do over all those years is just incredible, being so consistent. We definitely have to talk longer obviously because he's older and had more chances.
But the way he's been doing it and the way golf came along, thanks to Tiger, is phenomenal to see. That's also why so many people go watch golf now. I went to see Tiger and it's not the easiest thing. I walked inside of the ropes, but to go see him playing golf is kind of tough. You never really see him, you only see backs of other people (laughing).
I guess tennis is a bit more fan friendly in that respect. I don't know if I'm going to go see him here, but I hope he's going to come to the tennis on the weekend.

Q. Do you play golf?
ROGER FEDERER: I do. I played last week a ton.

Q. How well?
ROGER FEDERER: I need some advice from Tiger actually (laughing).

Q. Do you like it?
ROGER FEDERER: I do like it, yeah. It's very nice, relaxing.

Q. What can you tell to the boys that want to play tennis and that want to be No. 1, as you?
ROGER FEDERER: Well, the road is long, but I think if you have the right team and support from family and friends and everybody and give you an opportunity -- if you have good coaches, too -- and of course in the end you have to have the will also to work really hard, because today talent is not enough anymore.
You've got to practice really hard and then play well at the right times kind of thing to make a breakthrough and learn from your mistakes.
Tennis is tough. It's a bit of a losing game because you lose all the time, same as golf. There's only one winner every week. It's kind of tough. There's no draws and everything. So you'll have a lot of disappointments early on in your career. But it's just important to come out strong out of those losses.
I think if you get an opportunity, you've got to take it and be strong mentally.

Q. Is there a chance that you'll be playing more tournaments in Asia, especially countries like India? You haven't played there before. Is there a chance that Indian fans will get to watch you?
ROGER FEDERER: Yeah, I played there for the first time for UNICEF last year, and it was fascinating for me to get to meet the culture up close. I know many Indian people, and they're very, very nice.
So I would definitely like to in the next five years get to play in India. I always love going to places where I've never been, like Japan last year was for me a great experience, as well. So India is definitely one of my priorities for the next five years, yeah.

Q. You said there are some strong players. Do you think there's a chance to win the Davis Cup this year?
ROGER FEDERER: Oh, every year. That's such a strong team, always very good singles players, and doubles team, as well. They're a threat every year, yes. No matter if somebody gets injured they have backups like crazy, not like other countries.

Q. You mentioned that Tiger has been consistent for longer because he's older. When you look at tennis and you look at other players, or have you looked at how long they played or have you thought about how long you can maintain this level?
ROGER FEDERER: Well, I mean, as I came maybe on the really, really big stage, a bit later on, and I had actually time to deduce the situation and really work hard, not chase down all the tournaments and guarantees and all these kind of things.
I had time to really get comfortable with who I was. So this is why I think I can definitely maintain this level for quite some time. I don't feel any fatigue or anything.
But I definitely feel I'm getting a bit older, you know, just because of playing so many matches and seeing places for the second time or for like the tenth time almost, like here in Miami.
And what else do I want to say? Oh, yeah, I set myself the goal actually to play definitely until the Olympic Games in London. That is for me one of the big goals, and Wimbledon itself. That's for me a great scenario.
But I hope I can play longer than that, too. I'll have to see how it goes. Injury-wise, you never know.

Q. Any thoughts on Rafael Nadal you can share with us?
ROGER FEDERER: What do you want me to tell you?

Q. After a big win --
ROGER FEDERER: Yeah, he plays fantastic. For some it may come as a surprise. For me, I think it's normal. I always said I think he's -- if I'm not No. 1 he should be No. 1 because he's been playing so good over the last couple of years. For me I can't believe he hasn't won a tournament since the French Open.
But he was not playing that bad. People were saying he was in a slump and everything, and I knew he just came up against one guy that was really hot. Indian Wells suits his game, and finally he played like he usually does and beat all the guys, so I was happy to see that.

Q. How are the conditions here with the court? I know the weather is different than Indian Wells, but how does the court play?
ROGER FEDERER: Quite similar. I think it's very slow here actually, too. I don't know if it's slower than the last couple years, but it's hard to hit winners from the baseline. You've kind of got to work your way into those points. Kind of force the error, not actually get winners and stuff.
So it's very similar to Indian Wells, it's just humidity and wind, which makes it harder to control, and sweat, which makes it difficult.

Q. Do you like the purple?
ROGER FEDERER: Yeah, as long as it's not pink, it's okay. Go from blue to purple to maybe pink next year, so we'll see (laughing).

Q. Can you expound on the round-robin system?
ROGER FEDERER: Because of what happened, simple as that. I knew there was going to eventually be a problem with the round-robin system. Very sad to see it really had to happen to the people that woke up and realized.
But I guess we're going to be discussing this issue also this week, and see how we go forward now. Yeah, it's unfortunate, I think.

Q. Do you get more attention away from the court in Europe or in the United States? And then second part of that, in the last year has your attention level in the States changed?
ROGER FEDERER: I feel like there's been a big raise of attention since maybe my -- kind of my second US Open win when I beat Andre. I think that was a huge match for me. You know, almost had the feeling that all of America was watching that one because it was such a sentimental match, that maybe Andre was going to retire on the spot and everything.
I think it kind of started from then on, and then with all the continued success I've had an incredible run in the States especially. I've won many matches in North America, and honestly anywhere in America or Europe, there's not much of a difference anymore.
There used to be I could walk around much more easily in America obviously because I wasn't here so much, but lately I've come to learn that here it's the same thing. It's okay.

Q. Does it annoy you?
ROGER FEDERER: (Lauging) it's okay. People are friendly, polite. It's okay.

March 24, 2007

Roger Federer

KEY BISCAYNE, FLORIDA

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. As far as at the end of the day where it would have been very easy to get frustrated with all sorts of things, you must have been pleased the way you kept everything together in the end.
ROGER FEDERER: Well, I think especially the last few days, actually, it's been really difficult trying to get a normal day of hitting, you know.
I mean, yesterday was okay, but the days before that it was very windy and a lot of rain. So you had to just hope you got a bit of practice in.
I was feeling terrible a couple of days ago, so I'm just happy I came through, you know, because I didn't know what to expect tonight. I didn't know my opponent. You know, I've known since a long time when I'm going to play. So kind of a bit of expectations, too, from the fans and everybody.
So I'm happy I'm through, and I think I played okay, actually.

Q. Feeling terrible sort of sickly?
ROGER FEDERER: No, just timing. No timing. It was really hard to get the rhythm from the baseline.

Q. Can you assess Sam's game, Roger. He has some weapons, it seems?
ROGER FEDERER: Absolutely. I think he's a good player. I didn't know him much, you know. But I think he has a nice technique on the backhand. Can play aggressive on the forehand. Excellent first serve. He's got a lot of potential, and many things he has to work on.
But I think he moves pretty good for a tall guy. That's one thing. And I think if he works hard the next few years, he can be an excellent player in the future.

Q. We all know tournaments like Sony Ericsson, and US Open, it's totally a show. How difficult could it be to keep concentrating in the match, when you see all this crowd?
ROGER FEDERER: Yeah, I mean, I think it always goes along with the city you're in. You know, Miami and New York are very intense cities. A lot of walking around, a lot of partying, a lot of traffic. The whole thing is just busy.
Here in Miami you get many more of the South Americans, so you get a great mix of fans coming to the grounds. And again, I think almost 300,000 people coming to the grounds here over the almost two weeks.
So it's a really huge event for us players. And New York, obviously, the place that it is.
We enjoy coming here. It never gets boring, and the fans come out, really in huge numbers, and that makes it so much more enjoyable for us players.

Q. You like that? About the fans?
ROGER FEDERER: Of course, it's great.

Q. How about one particular fan, a certain golfer watching tonight, what was that like?
ROGER FEDERER: Yeah, it was good, you know. He told me since a couple of months he's going to come out because I knew so far in advance when I was going to play. So that was a great thing. I think we should do that more in the future.
Knowing maybe when the top players play. If it's a day session, night session, what day we'll play, so they can promote it. And also other people, not just Tiger, but other people can organize their evenings around that accordingly.
I'm happy he comes out during a tournament. I don't know how golfers are, if they're more serious than us tennis players. But I went out to see his practice, too, and it's great that he comes to watch tennis. I think it's a great honor for our sport.

Q. You feel guilty you might have kept him up late and he's got a big match?
ROGER FEDERER: I called him up and said Hey, it's raining here. You maybe want to go back to your ship. And he said, No, I'm going to come out and see you and wait around. So it was very nice.

Q. Do you feel any added pressure? Now you know him better than you did at the US Open, say, last year. But do you still feel when he's watching, do you feel any added pressure at all, or are you totally over that?
ROGER FEDERER: No, it was way more difficult at the US Open, I thought, you know. First time. Didn't know Tiger very well. Finally I got to meet him, and finally I got to play in front of him. That was my feeling first up.
He was sitting right, first row in my players' box, so I was like, Oh, I better play well tonight, you know. So today was no problem. He was sitting far back, and it was much more easy. But now I know him, too. So it's more relaxed.
But I was a bit tense at the US Open.

Q. Would you watch him tomorrow, or is it impossible?
ROGER FEDERER: Live, you mean?

Q. Live, you would watch him?
ROGER FEDERER: I will watch him on TV tomorrow.

Q. Who do you think to play in the next rounds?
ROGER FEDERER: It is possible, but my next focus is my next opponent. I don't know who it is yet. I have to go round by round, but I'd like to play him again, get my revenge.

Q. And Sam was a surprise for you?
ROGER FEDERER: Excuse me?

Q. Sam was a surprise for you?
ROGER FEDERER: My opponent today?

Q. Yes.
ROGER FEDERER: Like I expected, really. I knew he had a big first serve with a different game, and he played excellent last week. I knew I had to be very careful. We haven't seen much of him yet, but he's young, and he improves very quickly.
So like I expected. I thought it was going to be a bit more difficult with the weather and the opponent, I didn't know, but I came through and played well and pretty solid.

Q. Roger, why did you change your racquet before the Australian? And what was the difference in the strings?
ROGER FEDERER: Well, I mean cosmetic change is one thing. They change it sometimes year after year. But also testing it in the off season.
You know, after watching the technology, it's all the little details here and there. I was looking for a bit more control, and they were able to do that with the K Factor. It was not a huge difference, but it was very nice.

Q. Roger, you're someone who likes things exactly as they should be. This new innovation here with the ball boys going back when the umpire calls time. You were standing in the back of the court a couple of times, just kind of waiting for things to happen. Is that something that you'd rather not be the case here? That you think they should play to your tempo, rather than wait for them?
ROGER FEDERER: No, I mean, look, I understand if it's live TV that we play according to the breaks, you know. But I mean, if I'm ready to kind of go, I mean if the spectators don't miss one point, it's not the end of the world.
By the time they tune in they've got the replay. So if I'm ready to give the ball boy the towel, I kind of expect the ball boy to be ready for it. But look, small details. I can live with it, it's not the end of the world.
THE MODERATOR: Thank you.

March 26, 2007

Roger Federer

KEY BISCAYNE, FLORIDA

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. Were you referring to yourself as an idiot (laughter)?
ROGER FEDERER: Who else?

Q. Well, I wanted to find out from you if that was the case.
ROGER FEDERER: Yeah, I was a bit of an idiot on that shot, yeah.

Q. We've all done it.
ROGER FEDERER: Exactly. Me, too before. It just happened.

Q. Did you get that from Phil Mickelson?
ROGER FEDERER: Is that what he said?

Q. I'm such an idiot. Remember when he made the double bogey on 18? That was original.
ROGER FEDERER: Oh, okay.

Q. Were you displeased? You looked displeased most of the match.
ROGER FEDERER: No, I had to be very concentrated today, because I knew from the start he's a really big hitter. It was windy out there, and I'm still kind of looking to come back into the rhythm after not having many matches in the last couple of weeks.
I was happy the way I played today, to be honest. You know, it was tough to get the rallies going in the beginning because of the big serving from both players, or sometimes maybe a bit of poor returning, but I still think it was tough.
He served with a lot of kick from my side, so we were struggling to get the ball back into play. I think if I look at the whole match, I think it was a very good match and I can build on that for the next match hopefully.

Q. The speed of the court, we've heard reports about that from everybody. Slow? Fast? Medium?
ROGER FEDERER: I would think it's definitely on the slower side. Yeah, I mean, I think it's even slowed down through the last couple of years. That's my opinion. It feels very much like Indian Wells, and Indian Wells has always been very famous for being quite slow, I think.
Yeah, conditions all over the world are slowing down: Indoors, outdoors, hard courts, and also favoring all the different styles now and more and more the baseline.
That's what we usually have in the games, so it makes it hard to play incredibly aggressive.

Q. Is it good for the game?
ROGER FEDERER: Depends what you like as a --

Q. For you, I mean.
ROGER FEDERER: I think we still should have a bit more variety in surface speeds. In Dubai it's a bit quicker, Tokyo is quicker. But other than that I think every week is pretty much the same. Maybe it makes it easier for the player to adjust, but I still feel sometimes you should have slower and faster courts still.

Q. Kei Nishikori, could you tell me your impression about him?
ROGER FEDERER: I think he's a very good player. He came down from the Bollettieri Academy, so that's somebody to hit with every day. I really spend a lot of time on court with him, and I think he's a great player, so now it's just up to him to play the events and try to get his ranking up.
To me anyway he looks like a great talent, so I hope he can make the Top 100 soon.

Q. Was the wind about the same as it always is? It's swirling, isn't it?
ROGER FEDERER: In Miami or in general?

Q. Here, yes.
ROGER FEDERER: It's not so much swirling, it's coming from the one end. Depends on which side, it's just from one side to the other one. It's definitely so much more windy here that's in Indian Wells. It makes it harder for the rhythm.
I was really struggling with it in the first round and also in practice the first couple of days before my first match, so I was kind of a bit worried.
Yesterday I really had a good hit where I felt like I was really hitting the ball well again, and I think that showed in the match today. Wind always makes it hard, but once you get used to it, it actually can be a huge advantage for your game.

Q. Maybe this is insulting, but was that drop shot intentional?
ROGER FEDERER: It was, yes (smiling).

March 27, 2007

Roger Federer

KEY BISCAYNE, FLORIDA

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. A match like that, what can you say about it? You had the final sets, you had the break, you had points for the double break. What's your sentiment right now?
ROGER FEDERER: You know, it happens. That's the only thing. I mean, I was in total control for almost all the match, and once I broke back in the first set.
I was really happy with my level of play. I thought it was a great match, so it was disappointing to lose, of course.

Q. Maybe you don't know, but you actually won on points. You had 111 to Cañas' 108, so you actually won on points.
ROGER FEDERER: Unfortunately that doesn't matter right now.

Q. You had 54 unforced errors. Could you still think it was a great match?
ROGER FEDERER: Yeah, because the statistics guys have no clue what an unforced error is. I was checking it out. They take incredible unforced errors, you know, which is a forced error. I only had about half that.

Q. What is it about his game that makes him so difficult to play? What does he do?
ROGER FEDERER: He's a great competitor. He scrambles back so many balls and doesn't miss much, and then he moves the ball around very well, you know.
He really improved his backhand, his serve. They weren't that good a couple years ago, so that just tightened up his game a lot. I guess he played well against me both times, and I couldn't put him away unfortunately.

Q. What happened on the high volley at 5-5?
ROGER FEDERER: Look, you're not going to take it on the overhead, but I didn't want to let it bounce, so the obvious choice was to forehand drive.
Yeah, it's a tough shot to hit. I mean, I guess at 15-Love and 1-0 in the first set that's not a problem. But it was tough. It was getting into the night. It was day in the beginning and night in the end, and it kind of made it a bit tricky and I messed it up, so...

Q. How much did you think about your defeat two weeks ago?
ROGER FEDERER: Not too much actually. I took it as a new match. I had some blister issues, but I could have, should have maybe won the first set there, as well. Ended up not finding my rhythm into the match in the second set.
I knew this was going to be totally different. It did feel like it, too. I played so much better than last week, a couple weeks ago, and that was obvious for me. I was really expecting myself to win tonight, but it's one of those matches I should have never lost.

Q. You said the other day that you liked the atmosphere in Miami because the South American fans were very boisterous. How about the way it was today? Did you enjoy that atmosphere?
ROGER FEDERER: As long as they don't boo the Swiss guys, yeah. (Laughter) It's not so funny actually.

Q. Is there any way that you can up the technique, or do you have everything down in your game, it's just a matter of executing it on the day against that particular guy?
ROGER FEDERER: I should not lose the first set in the first place. That puts me against the wall, not to make another mistake. I did make another mistake in the third set. I should have gone up with double break, then gave it away easily to let him come back into the match.
Then of course it's a tight match, but I should never be at 4-All in the third set in the first place. But he dug deep and played well, and like I said, I was just not in the end very happy with the way things went.
I could have won, but I didn't do it, so it's disappointing.

Q. You've lost four times back to back against people; this is the fifth time. How do you get out of this?
ROGER FEDERER: I'm not going to play him every week, so it doesn't matter.

Q. Do you feel that he's less intimidated by you than maybe some higher ranked players? Do you feel that on the court?
ROGER FEDERER: No. I mean, everybody gives 100 percent against me and believes in their chances. You know, I have a feeling sometimes players play better against me than they would against other players because they have less to lose.
Yeah, so I definitely beat myself at Indian Wells, and here I got unlucky maybe to a point, but he played well again.

Q. (Indiscernible)?
ROGER FEDERER: Well, it's not the first time. I'll be okay for the clay court season. I'm looking forward to that one. That is obviously the huge goal for me. Since the Australian Open everything has been planned down so I play well at the French Open.
So you got to expect a loss here and there, you know, what I did the last couple of years to win back to back Indian Wells and Miami.
I knew that was not going to happen until the end of my career, so it's okay. It's just of course a disappointing loss here, and physically something was wrong last week. It's obviously disappointing coming from so far away, but it happens. I'm going to be fine for clay, that's for sure.

Q. In your mind then with the French, were these the two tournaments, despite their level and opponents, that were most expendable for you not to win?
ROGER FEDERER: I didn't get it, I'm sorry.

Q. Were these the tournaments easier for you not to win going into the French, the clay court season, because they're hard courts?
ROGER FEDERER: They're easier or harder for me?

Q. Easier for you.
ROGER FEDERER: To win these?

Q. No, easier for you to accept losing.
ROGER FEDERER: I don't get it. I don't know what's wrong with me. Sorry.

Q. You're usually the crowd favorite almost everywhere you play. How does it feel? Is it unusual for you to have the crowd rooting against you?
ROGER FEDERER: No. Look, I mean, it happens all the time. South America doesn't have the Master Series so they can consider this one as theirs.
So it's normal for them to support their players. Many South Americans make their way up here, and they make it a nice atmosphere for us players. Like I said, as long as they don't boo my Swiss flag. But otherwise it's okay, you know, and they handled themselves okay.
I've had much worse in the past in Davis Cup or in other places where I played a local guy. So this was a nice atmosphere to play in.

Q. You had a lot of success pressing the ball at the net today. Do you feel in your mind that in retrospect you could have pressed to the net more?
ROGER FEDERER: Yeah, I mean, I guess I could, yeah. I could definitely serve and volley a little bit more, yeah. I think when I was at the net I played very well. I volley had well lately. This entire year I've been volleying well, the Australian Open, as well.
It's definitely a good sign, good to have, especially coming into the clay court season. I wish I could use it more, but conditions are so slow and you can see these guys run down every ball. They pass in two turns. They first hit it down below and they pass you after that usually.
It makes it hard to get to the net, so I would make like a little bit faster courts.

Q. Are you happy with the challenging the calls? When you challenged a few calls at the line, were you happy with it?
ROGER FEDERER: It worked for me this week. I've had some good success with it, but that's not why I won or lost the match, again.

Q. Do you think in some way that Guillermo having been away from the tour while you've sort of consolidated your place at the top sort of helped him these last couple of matches?
ROGER FEDERER: I didn't get the beginning.

Q. Guillermo's being away, you've consolidated your place at the top has maybe in some way helped him because he's not sort of aware of whatever aura you bring on the court?
ROGER FEDERER: No, that's a similar question to what I answered before. I've beaten him and lost to him in the past, as well, when I was actually favored already against him. He just plays tough. I should have beaten him here twice in the States but I didn't do so.

Q. Your breakpoint conversion today was only 25 percent; you only converted 4 out of 16. That really hurt you today.
ROGER FEDERER: Yeah, of course it killed me in the end. I should have been up double break and then things are routine after that. Maybe he played well on a few points. I think I messed up also the situation at Love-30, not just the breakpoints. The big points didn't go my way in today's match, but that happens.

Q. Going to the clay season what is your plans about the preparation? In other words, which tournaments are you planning to play facing the clay season?
ROGER FEDERER: I'm going to -- I'm going to of course have another break here now because after that -- it's going to be a tough schedule because I'm going to play Monte Carlo, Rome, Hamburg, French Open, Halle, Wimbledon, and that's all big tournaments in Europe. It's going to make it hard.
So I need a break here after this, and then I'm going to start practicing and get to Monaco early and hopefully play well.