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US OPEN

September 11, 2004

Joachim Johansson

NEW YORK CITY

THE MODERATOR: First question, please.

Q. Any nerves before the match?

JOACHIM JOHANSSON: Well, not really. Always a little bit nervous before you go into a match, but nothing special I think.

Q. Were you surprised at how intense Lleyton was for somebody that you know so well?

JOACHIM JOHANSSON: No, not really, actually.

Q. You didn't think he was extra pumped up?

JOACHIM JOHANSSON: No. I mean, he's always pumped and he's playing good when he's pumped. There's no reason for not being pumped today.

Q. Did you try to talk Jaslyn into sitting in your box?

JOACHIM JOHANSSON: No, I mean, it was best thing for her to do was sit up there, so it was all right.

Q. Did you look up at her at all?

JOACHIM JOHANSSON: Yeah.

Q. You had one good opportunity early in the match to break. He came up with big serves. On the first one, at breakpoint, did you have any chance at all to return that ball?

JOACHIM JOHANSSON: I can't really remember it. I think he served to my forehand, did he?

Q. You had scored four points in a row.

JOACHIM JOHANSSON: I remember that. I think it was a forehand. Yeah, I can't really remember it. I can't really remember which one it was, sorry.

Q. What did you and Lleyton say to each other after the game was over at the net?

JOACHIM JOHANSSON: Actually, I can't remember. I think he said something about a good tournament. That's nothing I normally remember.

Q. Have you spoken to Jaslyn since the match?

JOACHIM JOHANSSON: I saw her for few seconds. Yeah, I spoke.

Q. What did she say?

JOACHIM JOHANSSON: Same thing as Lleyton said, good tournament and I should be proud of myself for these two weeks here.

Q. Are you going to stick around?

JOACHIM JOHANSSON: No, I think I'm going to be leaving, but I think Jaslyn is staying.

Q. In retrospect, did it turn out to be more awkward than you thought, the whole scene?

JOACHIM JOHANSSON: No, I felt fine. I'm not sure how he felt, but it seemed like he felt fine, too. I mean, he won 3-Love. Obviously, he played pretty well today. Didn't affect us, I think.

Q. Was there anything that surprised you about his game today?

JOACHIM JOHANSSON: No. I think he played the way I thought he was going to play. And I think I played the match well even though I think I didn't play as well as I was hoping. But I think my tactic worked all right. I missed a few easy shots. I got broken three times from the same end. I didn't take care of the breakpoint I had. But it was like I thought it was gonna be.

Q. His ability to cover the entire court, how exasperating is that for you on the other side of the net? Does it make you go closer to the lines than you normally would?

JOACHIM JOHANSSON: No, I mean, he gets a lot of balls back. I'm used to that when I been practicing with him. But I think today he got it back very low, so it was tough for me to hit winners from that position. When they're a little bit higher, then It's easier for me. But I think he kept the ball very low when he was under pressure. I think that's why the reason he won today.

Q. Do you prefer to play someone with a game similar to yours such as Roddick or someone like Lleyton?

JOACHIM JOHANSSON: The way it turned out, yes. But normally I think I would say no.

Q. This was your best performance in a Grand Slam tournament. Do you consider this to be a break through in terms of your career?

JOACHIM JOHANSSON: I mean, I won Memphis this year. I thought that was pretty good for me. Fourth round Wimbledon. I guess if you make a semis, obviously that's better than the fourth round, so maybe, yeah.

Q. The match against Andy was so difficult, so tense. Sometimes after a big win like that there can be an emotional drop. Do you think you might have had one?

JOACHIM JOHANSSON: No, I don't think that happened to me today, no.

Q. You've been practicing with Lleyton so much. Do you think it benefits the two of you or perhaps it gives him the edge?

JOACHIM JOHANSSON: No, I mean, I think I learned a lot from him. I think he would have started to read my serve anyway, so, no.

Q. What do you think about his chances of winning here?

JOACHIM JOHANSSON: I mean, the way he's been playing these two weeks, he hasn't lost a set. The way I felt he's playing now, compared to how he did in the beginning, when it was in Toronto, but actually he was sick, it was his first tournament after Wimbledon, I think he improved a lot. If he's playing like this, it's going to be tough other for the other guy at this point.

Q. You played with him over four years?

JOACHIM JOHANSSON: Not really four years.

Q. You've been hitting with him for a few years. Try and compare how he's playing now vis-a-vis even in 2002?

JOACHIM JOHANSSON: I only practiced with him one and a half years now, a little bit forth and back. It feels like he's got a lot of matches, like he's got a lot of confidence because he's won every match he's played the last three, four weeks. He's playing more aggressive and that makes him a dangerous player.

Q. Is his serve that much better now than it was a few years ago?

JOACHIM JOHANSSON: He got a high percentage of first serves in, I think, so obviously that helps him a lot.

Q. After the first set they had a tribute to the policemen and firemen in New York. It's hard to turn on the TV and not remember it's September 11th. Does it feel different today? Does that infiltrate your day?

JOACHIM JOHANSSON: Not that much, but I mean, I thought it could have been a quiet minute before the match, but that didn't happen. Everyone was standing up after two sets and I noticed why. I think that's a good thing to do, but I don't think it affected me.

Q. Your game is so powerful. If you take your volleying to another level higher, is that the next priority perhaps in the development of your game?

JOACHIM JOHANSSON: Yeah, I mean, if I could come into the net when I got some chances instead of staying back, then I have to hit another one. But today my tactic was staying back and trying to outhit him from the baseline. I think if I could improve that game, I would raise my level a little bit more.

Q. You have to wait till the end of the season to begin working on it?

JOACHIM JOHANSSON: I'm working on it.

Q. Will you be visiting Australia soon?

JOACHIM JOHANSSON: No, I'm going to go back now and practice for three weeks before the European indoor season, then I will be going down there in the beginning of December.

Q. Do you always stay at Glynn and Cherilyn's house when you're there?

JOACHIM JOHANSSON: Yeah.

Q. It's quite cozy?

JOACHIM JOHANSSON: Yeah, it's nice.

Q. How's the court in the backyard?

JOACHIM JOHANSSON: It's similar to the Australian Open, so it's good.

Q. You'll be playing Lleyton in the backyard again?

JOACHIM JOHANSSON: I'm not sure.

Q. You can tell us now who was winning those matches now that this one's over.

JOACHIM JOHANSSON: We'll wait for next match.

End of FastScriptsâ€¦.

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