US OPEN

September 6, 1997

Patrick Rafter

Q. Congratulations, first up. Did you think you'd do it in three sets?

PATRICK RAFTER: Definitely no. There's no way. Michael is too great a competitor. It was just one of those days everything worked for me. It's hard to explain.

PATRICK RAFTER: Oh, yeah, for sure. I mean, you never go out there expecting you're going to beat Michael 3, 3 and 4. You just never expect those sort of matches.

PATRICK RAFTER: Because I just -- everything worked for me today. You know, I served great. Every big point that he had, I came up with something that I don't usually come up with.

PATRICK RAFTER: I am. At the same time, nothing has sunk in yet. That's really important. I've got to try to keep my feet on the ground here at the moment. I'll have a few days off after this. I can let everything soak in then. You know, it is important because there is one match to go. I haven't won anything yet.

PATRICK RAFTER: Definitely. He had the chance on my serve. Came up with something big. He was trying to get the crowd involved. The crowd was getting involved. It was making for a good atmosphere. Looked like it could have been a great match, a very competitive match.

PATRICK RAFTER: No. I'm not feeling anything from back home. You know, I'm not seeing it. All the well wishes I get from back home, it's just a positive thing for me. I don't feel anything, any pressure at the moment.

PATRICK RAFTER: Well, to get to the net, get into a good position at the net. Just mix up my serve a lot, as I did. When I do get in rallies, try not to panic too much. It's just been the same game plan pretty well every guy I've played. They all play similar. Now I have to play Greg Rusedski. He plays a big difference, his game is a big serve. He likes to get to the net. I haven't played anyone like that yet.

PATRICK RAFTER: Maybe. You know, you're likely to see that in another ten years. I guess only time will tell. I think the reason that it is dying is because everyone is hitting the ball hard and it's hard to move to the ball. But, you know, Greg is a pretty good athlete. He moves around the net pretty well. He can afford to come to the net.

PATRICK RAFTER: Michael was great. You know, must have been very difficult for him because he did have a lot of pressure on him going into this match. He was the one who was supposed to win. He was the one who was supposed to win this tournament. At the end of it, you know, as excited as I was, I felt -- you sort of have to feel something for the other person, and I did. He was very, very supportive. You know, he was a fantastic sportsman at the end of the match. It's just so nice to see that.

PATRICK RAFTER: Oh, yeah. I think so. It was only a two-hour match. Just a lot of stretching, a lot of massage. It could have been a really, really long match. They're the ones that you really fear.

PATRICK RAFTER: No, the shoulder was good today. It held up well, like it's been holding up for the last two weeks. Just been doing a lot of treatment on it, a lot of maintenance. As soon as this tournament finishes, I'll have a few days off from it. Then it will settle down.

PATRICK RAFTER: Get the thing back, just try and get it back. There's no secret for that.

PATRICK RAFTER: How do I feel about my return?

PATRICK RAFTER: Pretty good (laughter). That's a great answer, isn't it? You know, it's very difficult to get Greg's serve back. You have to sort of guess a little bit. The way I'm sort of chipping it back, I think I have to keep it low though. As you said, he will be coming to the net. So if I can keep the ball low, you know, it will give him some problems.

PATRICK RAFTER: I don't know. I don't know how Michael was really feeling today. He did have a lot of tough matches here. You know, it is very difficult to keep bouncing back like that. You know, Michael is such a great competitor. Even if he is down, he looks down, he's going to make you work really hard and put a lot of pressure on you. So I thinking about anything with Michael, if he was feeling bad or anything. I was just thinking about myself and my game the whole day. I guess that's why everything worked.

PATRICK RAFTER: I am playing a POM.

PATRICK RAFTER: I'm thinking. I've got to be careful.

PATRICK RAFTER: Yeah. Playing a POM. He's got us a fair few times this year. He gets a little bit cocky about it. It was good to get him at New Haven. Greg, he's a great player. That's the way I'm addressing the match, not that he's a POM, that he's a great player, and I'm going to have to play the same way or better to beat him.

PATRICK RAFTER: Oh, definitely not. No. I think the thing that Michael does very well, he doesn't necessarily go for a winner off the first pass, he makes you play a tough and low volley. I felt like I could read him. I've been volleying well, putting them in the corners. Greg hits the ball a bit flatter and harder, a bit more difficult to read those sort of balls. So, no, I feel Greg, if he gets in position, he can definitely pass me as well as anyone.

PATRICK RAFTER: I played him a lot. I do know where he's sort of going. He knows what I'm going to do. It was just that, I guess I had one or two more tricks up my sleeve today.

PATRICK RAFTER: I just hope that I can sleep tonight. That's the important thing. There's no real secret. Go out and have a nice dinner, relax with my brothers and my friends, just go to bed.

PATRICK RAFTER: I think my second serve is winning me a lot of points at the moment. That's been the biggest key to my game. I can afford to go for more on my first serve. When I can go more for that, I can go for the corners, more difficult for them to return. When I played Andre at the Australian Open in '95, his returns were so good, didn't matter what I served at him. My second serve, he was killing it. This time he wasn't crushing as much, because I got a little bit more, I think. I think the serve has developed a little bit.

PATRICK RAFTER: Definitely. Oh, yeah, for sure. The attention has been centered away from me, and rightfully so. Mark's potentially a fantastic player. He is going to be wherever I am at the end of this week, not in the too distant future. May take him another year or two to mature, but he'll be there.

PATRICK RAFTER: I think you just have to be in the situation a few times. Greg and I are pretty excitable people. You know, it's a big thrill for us at the moment to get that far, to get as far as we have. To go that one set further would be just an even bigger thrill. You're going to see a little tension out there. It's normal, it's natural. Just the person who can control the nerves better is going to be the victor at the end of the day.

PATRICK RAFTER: I think so. 5-0 this year. Hopefully I can get 5-1.

PATRICK RAFTER: I just think it's got to turn around sometime. If I keep getting myself in this situation, someone is going to have to do an (inaudible) or something.

PATRICK RAFTER: Because I have the same grip with the forehand slice and the slice backhand. If he goes for my forehand, I can punch it and come in as well. I don't like to really change it when I'm reacting that quickly.

PATRICK RAFTER: Maybe because they don't feel comfortable doing it. It's just not their shot. You have to do whatever feels comfortable for you. It works well for me, so I'll keep doing it.

PATRICK RAFTER: No, not really. You know, it's just something that -- I don't think it will be any different than the way I walked onto the court today. Sure, it's the Finals. You know, it's a big occasion, but I think I'll be pretty relaxed when I walk on the court. I'll make sure of it anyway. I'll make sure I'm relaxed.

PATRICK RAFTER: Well, I'm not really interested in what happens in terms of them or me. I mean, definitely my attention will be centered on myself, not their match. But, you know, women's tennis is becoming a lot stronger. They've got some great personalities in the game. Are you trying to get me to give you a prediction? I don't know who is going to win it. . No, I'm just thinking of my own game at the moment.

PATRICK RAFTER: He played a bit of a serve and volleyer today I think in Bjorkman. Is that what you said?

PATRICK RAFTER: And Greg hasn't either?

PATRICK RAFTER: Probably a left-hander would be a bit more important. I haven't played a lefty for a while. It's a different swing on the ball. More important, I think. But, you know, at the best of times when I'm playing left-handers anyway, they can serve it and get you right out of court a lot better than what I think the right-handers can.

PATRICK RAFTER: No (laughter).

PATRICK RAFTER: No.

PATRICK RAFTER: Yeah, I saw it. Brad Gilbert, David Wheaton, Grand Slam Cup. Would have been good if they got into it (laughter).

PATRICK RAFTER: That's a pretty broad question. A lot of things. I guess me being myself, working a lot by myself, having the Davis Cup match under my belt, was great to be part of a team. Australian Davis Cup team means a lot to me. Me working by myself, I've been able to make a lot of decisions for myself. My family, again, have been very supportive. Fitzy and Rochey, everyone has contributed. Gary Stickler (ph) back home, a lot of these people have done a lot of hard work over the many years I've been around. These are the people that really have helped me.

PATRICK RAFTER: I don't know, Mate. It's hard for me to say because I'm not there and I can't really see it. I don't know how much press is getting back home. I'm sure it's getting a lot. How much attention it is getting. I mean, I'd love to it to make a big impact. Hopefully it does.

PATRICK RAFTER: I don't know. I'm going to be the same sack of crap I am (laughter).