U.S. OPEN

September 1, 1994

Richey Reneberg

RICHEY RENEBERG: It was, I felt, a little more pressure today and fortunately he made a few more unforced errors than he probably usually does and got a little bit impatient, I thought. But I thought I played-- I hit the ball well and maybe not quite -- I think I have to be a little bit more aggressive in the next match. Overall, I thought I hit the ball very well. Conditions were a bit tough today, very windy, always difficult to play in the wind.

RICHEY RENEBERG: No, actually forgot about it. Thanks for reminding me.

RICHEY RENEBERG: No, not really. I have never really done that well in Grand Slams, and for some reason, I always feel like I play real well in the Tour events during the year; then I get to the Grand Slams and not that I -- not that I don't play well, but haven't been able to win that many matches, so it is nice, you know, to win a couple. But, I mean, these are the toughest tournaments, three out of five sets makes a big difference and so hopefully, if I continue to play well and, you know, I feel like I have a decent shot. My next match I am not sure who I play, but I think that hopefully I could take them one at a time. Everyone is good and no matter who you are, you can't be looking past them, anyone, and I like I said the other day, just because I beat Becker, no one is going to roll over and give me matches and I feel comfortable the way I am playing; every day is a new day. You have good days and bad days, hopefully I will have a couple of good.

RICHEY RENEBERG: Definitely.

RICHEY RENEBERG: Well, it does give me some confidence, particularly in the Grand Slams that I can play against -- I have always had actually relatively good results against some of the top players, just never beaten any. I have had a lot of matches, especially earlier in my career in Wimbledon where I lost to McEnroe, Edberg, pretty close matches. There is a big difference between getting close and beating them. And like I said the other night, that was the best tennis match that I have ever played-- probably will ever play. So can't expect to go out every day and play like that. I think if I was a bit younger, it would mean a bit more in terms of I have been playing these for seven years. I have always -- everyone says to me I am a doubles player, but I don't really necessarily like that label because I feel like, I mean, all my career I work hard and I have worked hard. That is the reason you work hard, to play singles. And doubles, really, to me is just something-- obviously in Davis Cup, I mean, doubles has done a lot for me. Really, lucky, like winning U.S. Open and played in the Davis Cup a few times, but I really -- I'd like to think that I have a couple of more good years of singles left in me. That is really what is most important to me.

RICHEY RENEBERG: Definitely, I mean, every time you have a win like that, you go out like that -- other night, after I had beaten Becker, even yesterday, I didn't really feel any different at all today when I went out there. I was a bit more nervous because, I mean, everyone expects maybe more of you and it is important to always remember, all you can do is go out there and do your best. Easier said than done. If you start thinking about these expectations and all, really, like I said, among the players it is, you know, no one-- like, no one is going to go out there and give you matches because you beat Becker. Maybe it used to be like that, but now with the depth in tennis, you have to be ready for every match, and. . .

RICHEY RENEBERG: Today?

RICHEY RENEBERG: I felt pretty comfortable right a way. Off to a good start up 4-Love and he is pretty streaky. There were a lot of times when he would all of a sudden unleash on a bunch of shots and especially during the second set, I felt like I was going to close it out. He started swinging out and they were going in, and then the third set seemed like he sort of gave up, and-- but still, guys like that a lot of times when they have given up is when they can play their best, played a few good games like that, you have to be careful. Fortunately, I kept enough balls in the court. It is always difficult, you get to that point, you think, should I keep playing the way I am playing, which is try to play the way I want to play, a bit more aggressive, try to get the ball on the court. Today I had opted to just get the ball on the court. Fortunately, it worked.

RICHEY RENEBERG: No, it wasn't difficult at all. I knew he was a very good player. He has got-- I know that earlier this year he beat Edberg on hardcourt, and I think he has had a win over Becker and some of other guys and that is, I mean, like everyone, it is not like we are not there feeling, this should be easy. I mean, I knew that I could easily lose the match today, but, you know, obviously I mean, it is a lot easier to play when you have nothing to lose, like the other night. You're kind of swinging out and if you lose, everyone kind of expects that. If you win, it is a big surprise, but so you know, from that standpoint, it's a little different, but yeah, I mean, the match other night was really exciting and I mean it was as good as I can play, and I am still surprised I won.

RICHEY RENEBERG: No, wasn't a let-down, not every day. It is like, you know, not every baseball player can go out and hit four for four and is not going do it the next day. I felt like I played very well. It wasn't a let-down. I didn't expect to play the way I did the other night. It was just one of those times when you, like I said the other night after the match, it is like every kind of way-- every time I guessed-- on his serve, I would guess right, and at least some of the time he aced me quite a few times, but I just kind of went swinging as hard as I could, all going in. It is not like that every day.

RICHEY RENEBERG: Little bit. It was a bit difficult at times. He is a tough guy to play because he kind of goes for a lot of shots and especially after the second set, like I said, it is tough to know how to play against someone when someone is just going for everything on every shot, but, you know, a little bit. I think it also with the conditions were like, you know, the wind is always tougher to play in the wind and you always-- I always feel a little bit more like my mind tells me to just get the ball on the court.

RICHEY RENEBERG: Not really. I knew he has a good first serve and I was going to try attack his second serve. I did at times, and hit a few more balls to his forehand, but his forehand was pretty dangerous at times. He is a good player. Like I said, I think he did pretty good at Wimbledon this year. I don't know what his record is. He is not ranked that high, but he is capable of beating anyone.

RICHEY RENEBERG: Well, I wasn't thinking too much about the second round. When I beat Becker first round so it was kind of-- I mean, yeah, you always, yeah, I always feel like I have a chance to -- I feel like I have a chance to beat anybody, you know, but you just have to prepare for the matches, like I say, and go out and just play your best some days. Like the other night, I played great, I played best you can play and then other times you don't feel quite as comfortable. Maybe you don't move as well, whatever, your serve is off. Every day is kind of different.

RICHEY RENEBERG: Except for a guy like Sampras. Every day is easy for him.

RICHEY RENEBERG: I feel fine. I mean, I don't really look -- I mean, it is impossible to look past and Ivanisevic is out-- I would have to get to the quarters to do that and so, I mean, if you start looking-- like I was saying, if you look past anyone, you are going to probably lose the next match. It is important, the guy -- I know the guys playing next round, Richard Fromberg, very good Australia player playing Davis Cup and Agenor, another good player, I am hoping to win that, and it is really, I think, important just to kind of take them one at a time, and--

RICHEY RENEBERG: Yeah, obviously, Ivanisevic losing and with Becker out, Todd Martin is still there, Rosset, if he won, so -- and the thing is that it doesn't really matter, I don't think. It matters very little a lot of the times if guys are seeded; if they are not seeded; what they are ranked; what they are not ranked, on a given day anyone can beat anyone. It is something that seems like has really just started happening a lot last five years. Used to be a lot of the guys kind of coast through the first couple of rounds. Absolutely anyone can beat anyone in the men's game. And so. . .

RICHEY RENEBERG: No.

RICHEY RENEBERG: I have played Fromberg a lot more, but I have lost to him the last time we played and Agenor.

RICHEY RENEBERG: What?

RICHEY RENEBERG: Who?

RICHEY RENEBERG: Like I said, my main focus is singles. Everyone seems to think of me as a doubles player, but really, I mean, I spent most of the time thinking about singles. There are times both for Jim and myself, first of all, we lost to a good team. They beat us in Cincinnati, and -- but you know, it can almost be good, you know, because less matches you have to play, I think it is really difficult to really do well in both. The one year I had a good year in doubles, I had a bad back and my singles ranking dropped to about 90 or 95, and it was a lot -- I was spending most of my time playing doubles and it is a lot easier to concentrate on, I think, on one thing or another very difficult to do good in both. You know, lately I have really tried to concentrate on singles like I always have. I am not that worried about it.

RICHEY RENEBERG: No.

RICHEY RENEBERG: No, it was about 3:00 in the morning.

RICHEY RENEBERG: Wasn't much going on. No, I didn't really, I mean, we actually had to play doubles the next day, so I kind of went back and I got home pretty late and slept for a few hours; came out played doubles, no, not really. Obviously, I felt great the next day. I felt like it was a really exciting match. I was lucky to be a part of it.

RICHEY RENEBERG: I was saying I was surprised I won. I have seen him win so many matches like that after it was 5-4, 40-Love. He hit the three big serves and held, and I kind of thought that that was it. I said I have seen this happen a bunch of times and then in the tiebreaker I don't know what got into me, but I all of a sudden started to hit every line on the court, and even the overhead at the end was a difficult shot. It happened so fast. If I had time to think about it, I probably would have missed it. No, it was just-- I was just kind of surprised from the standpoint that I have seen him win so many matches like that to be able to beat him. I thought in the fifth set I thought he kind of gotten his game going; first two he didn't play well at all; big difference. That was really the match, was the fact that he gave me the first two sets. But I played well the first two. Fifth set, I thought we both played real well and to come out on top. . .

RICHEY RENEBERG: There is always that fear. It happens every week. You know, you go out one day, you feel a bit different everyday really. You go out and you play-- you feel like you are real hitting your forehand great; next day you can't seem to hit it in. One day you are hitting your serve backhands; while the next day volleying well, but you can't hit a backhand on the court. It is not really a fear. I have been playing long enough to where I am used to it. You have good days and bad days. You get in a groove. A big part of tennis is confidence. Obviously, that win over Becker, main thing is that it gives me some confidence. I know that I am playing well and that I have a chance to win these matches and-- but it doesn't guarantee I am going to go out and play well, that is for sure.