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GREAT AMERICAN INSURANCE ATP CHAMPIONSHIP


August 7, 1996


Tim Henman


CINCINNATI, OHIO

TIM HENMAN: I knew it was not going to be easy. Probably this surface suits him a little more than me, maybe. Grass probably suited me more so. Having said that, you know, I still have my chances.

Q. (Inaudible.)

TIM HENMAN: It is very hot. But I don't really think that was a major factor in the match.

Q. Any trouble returning his serve?

TIM HENMAN: Yeah, difficult. When you get a guy serving big, but he is not serving and volleying, you want to try and make him play as much as possible. Having said that, against a guy of his caliber, no point in just sort of putting the ball in the middle of the court and letting him have a free swing. You need to do more than that. So I had to take risks and at times it paid off. I think in the second set I had a breakpoint, I made a good approach from -- probably should have made the volley, but, you know, unfortunately I didn't.

Q. (Inaudible.)

TIM HENMAN: Yeah, that was obviously a key point.

Q. Talk about your success getting to the quarters and what that has done for you as far as just the confidence level?

TIM HENMAN: Sure. I think when I beat Kafelnikov, two British guys; then I beat Gustafsson to make qualies of a Grand Slam; especially in your home country, definitely does give you a lot of confidence and, you know, it gives yourself more belief that you can beat some of the tap ranked players.

Q. Has it changed your life when you are home there?

TIM HENMAN: Hopefully not. Is it difficult to say because I haven't actually been home. I left the day after I had lost to go and play Davis Cup and then I went straight from Davis Cup to the Olympics. I haven't really been home. So it is difficult to judge as of yet. But, you know, I am sure more people will probably know who I am, but at the end of the day hopefully that won't change me.

Q. (Inaudible.)

TIM HENMAN: Did I feel what?

Q. Did you feel the attention and --

TIM HENMAN: Sure. I think it is the first time everyone has made the quarters for quite sometime, a British player, that is, so I think there was a lot of people interested in what I was doing.

Q. From where you were at this point last year (Inaudible.)

TIM HENMAN: I think the end of last year was where, you know, I did make a big improvement. I won two Challenges, which was, you know a big -- I broke the top 100 last year and I think the beginning of this year, I started off very well in Australia and then in the indoor swing in Europe, that is where I think I have made the most improvement and I sort of, you know, established myself in some of the bigger tournaments.

Q. Where is the improvement, more mental than physical?

TIM HENMAN: No, probably physical in the sense I probably trained a lot harder off the court and that -- I think that is begun to pay off and I think probably my serve, if you looked at the way I served probably twelve months ago to the way I serve now, I think that is an area that is obviously so important in the men's game and it is something that, you know, I have been able to rely on a lot more.

End of FastScripts….

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