IBM/ATP TOUR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP

November 13, 1995

Thomas Muster

THOMAS MUSTER: Well, what I am, I am, but.....

THOMAS MUSTER: I like abstract paintings. One of my favorite painters is Kandinski and Miro. I think that art -- a lot of -- musicians, whatever, creative world, there is a lot to do also with sports because it is individual and that is why I like it. I don't know about music, but I also enjoy music, so to listen to music, also to make music, which is -- my kind of music is more noise than music, but anyway I enjoy it.

THOMAS MUSTER: I think that he is one of the biggest historical persons we have in Austria in music and he was a genius which is going back to what I said, every individual which is really great in something and it also comes back to the same point of Mozart.

THOMAS MUSTER: Well, I started painting four years ago and was connected with an art exhibition which was, with my coach, there was, I mean, he also has a management company and so it happened that there was an exhibition for young artists in Austria. I went there and I got inspired by those paintings. That is how I started and I have just enjoyed doing it. But it is not a big deal. As I said, it is not like I want to go out -- I don't want to go out and sell paintings because it is not my business. I just enjoying doing it.

THOMAS MUSTER: 20. I don't have much time.

THOMAS MUSTER: It doesn't really matter to me to own a painting of Kadinski or something. It is just that he was somebody who made things look this way and also made them enjoyable to others. That is what I like. It is not to own it.

THOMAS MUSTER: Yeah. As I said, there is not that much time to visit museums or things like that because when you play, you practice twice a day, so there is not much time to go to exhibitions. You don't have time to do those things.

THOMAS MUSTER: Not much. I think that I believe that two times like John McEnroe who was buying paintings and collected paintings and I don't know how much he understands from paintings, but there is Fibak like he started when he was a child with his father to get to know art and the biggest collection of Polish arts and so he has an understanding for it so he knows what to collect and whatnot. He is really someone who is a specialist, so he knows about art. Probably more than anybody else in tennis, so I mean, he would be probably somebody I would ask if I would buy a painting. I would go to him and ask or through his connections, but I don't think there is really somebody right now, you can speak about art; not that I know of.

THOMAS MUSTER: Not really. I don't think my game looks very artistic - but in terms of fitness, but not in terms of style.

THOMAS MUSTER: No psychological effect. I always knew I could do it. It was a question of preparation and believing in myself that I can do it, but it doesn't mean that I am an indoor specialist now or it doesn't mean that I am going to win Wimbledon next year or anything like that. It is just - I always believed in that and I always knew that my game was good enough to win a Super 9 and on an indoor surface. I think that the fact that the balls are getting slower and the surface are getting slower, I think there are more chances for players like myself to win tournaments indoors, but as I said, it has no special effect. I think people - they always put me in one spot and say this guy is only a clay court player. They weren't watching my game.

THOMAS MUSTER: No, I just proved one thing that I could have reached it earlier because I had the same chance to do it in '89 and be in the top five already in '89, but it is a long way back and, you know, it is like six years - it took me six years to get back where I was in '89 and, I don't know, I am not too old to hold against it for another, two, three years, but this is something I can't answer now, but -- this could have happened in '89, but in another way, I have learned a lot of things out of it. There were many ups-and-downs in my career which gave me a good impact into my personality and in my life.

THOMAS MUSTER: I just said they were achievements which this year which only Nastase did winning three events like Monte Carlo, winning Rome and Paris in one year, there was nobody else. And putting myself in the category of Borg, I would never because I wasn't a five-time Wimbledon champion. I haven't won Paris six times, whatever, I mean, so it wouldn't be fair, but I said having achievements like winning over 40 matches, -- winning 12 tournaments a year, puts me in a category maybe even if it is just for one year like Borg or McEnroe. That is what probably I meant and there was a misunderstanding. Winning a Grand Slam tournament puts you up, even if it's one title, puts you in a different category, because you can win as many tournaments as you want, but you don't win a Slam, you are always going to be a third middle class player. If you win a Slam, you are better. That is a better achievement. That is it. It is a great surface. The balls are pretty fair. I think the group I am in suits also to my game. So I have a realistic chance to play well. The Masters is very, very hard to play and --

THOMAS MUSTER: I don't want to be a nice guy. I don't want to slip my game to others. I don't want to be nice to players -- it would be nice to play against; lose against everybody. I would be a nice opponent, but then probably would be worthless to win against me so I rather be a tough cookie than -- you have to realize that tennis is not played only by shots. It is played by mind. So.....

THOMAS MUSTER: I have got three warnings all my life, I will tell you, so if you compare it to other players in the world, I am probably one of the fairest players ever by warnings, by fines, whatever. You can go make a research by that, so it means I am playing within the rules, absolutely within the rules, so...

THOMAS MUSTER: I don't need to put my opponent in the mirror in the evening. I mean, for me, it is my job. It is my work. We play for points, we play for money. We play for everything, so it is -- we play for prestige. We play for numbers. That is it. That is -- and tennis world is what you achieve and tennis and the numbers they make you a good person or a bad person or a good player or a bad player. That is the way it is.

THOMAS MUSTER: I am just saying if you are playing well and you are rich, you are nice looking person. If you don't play good and you have nothing, you can, you can (Inaudible.), that is the whole thing and I am not saying because you are playing good tennis you are a better person. That is one thing, but people outside the court, they do it.

THOMAS MUSTER: I play because it is my job. Whenever I finish playing tennis, I can ask myself if I possibly did everything to be as good as possible. And if I can answer that with a yes, I could be happy for whatever is coming afterwards. If I have to answer that with a no, I always have to ask myself all my life why I didn't try harder or why I didn't not do this or that. That is what I am playing for. I have to be as good as possible and to use all my possibilities I have. If I don't do that, I have to answer no and then it would be bad.

THOMAS MUSTER: I don't think it has any effect. Anybody believes that if I was just a clay court player for the last ten years, he wasn't watching my results carefully and wasn't watching my game carefully. Because I have had more success on other surfaces than on clay.

THOMAS MUSTER: This is -- it is not that I want to be called Mr. Muster, but I am talking particularly about the pledge of Austrian people. That is why I say if somebody comes up to me and says could I please have an autograph or could I please, whatever, it is some Austrian people, they don't have the respect and they come up to you in a certain way or slang and talk to you; that, I don't want to be; that is my answer is just it is just another one that you would expect if you want an autograph, but that is the only thing I want to have is a little bit of respect and when you come in somewhere you say hello or you say something. I don't try to educate people, but there is a certain limit. But this is just a -- particular for Austrian. Doesn't mean that I am going to go somewhere -- (inaudible). I think there is no time to lose and the first of January is early enough to start a tournament, so I think that it is a nice tournament and I like to go there before the Open and I have played many -- Sidney before the Australian Open and so I am just trying something else this year and I heard it is very nice to play. Just think it is the biggest year, that is it because altogether it is not Paris, it is not Essen, it is not the Masters. I think it is altogether, but I am not that far. I am about 2,000 miles away from being No. 1, so I don't really bother myself with that question. Statistically there is a possibility this way, but as I said, I don't really pay too much care and I think the best chance would be the spring next year.

THOMAS MUSTER: As I said, tennis is not having shots. Tennis is not only having back and forth or big serve or big volley. Tennis is a head game. You have to have a good mind to play and it doesn't hurt to be talented. You need certain temper and he -- his temper is a little bit too high, but whatever you take, I think that Goran is one of the most talented; probably best players in the world and this year wasn't his best, but it could be next year, but he is going to be No. 1 in the world, we never know with Goran. He was twice a Wimbledon finalist, so I think that he is a real good player and I don't think it is -- I am not a psychologist, so I can't judge is mental problems, and I don't think I should do it.

THOMAS MUSTER: It is a process of about 12, 13 years when I started. You cannot change in one minute, in one hour, in two weeks or even in two years. You can improve, but I think you have to realize when you are young and I always was reading books about mind, about concentration, about, you know, certain things you need for sports; not only for sports. I think it is pretty much based on rules in life. It is not so much particular to tennis. It is going more to social life, to behavior in life, to goals, to so many things connected together that you can build on your mental strength. It is not possible and I wouldn't do it because all the good things I don't want to miss and all the bad things I don't want to miss because that is where you learn the most.

THOMAS MUSTER: Because it was, from the dangerous side, it was less dangerous from other sports. It was not so much travelling and -- well, that is what my father said. And it was basically for the moment the cheapest thing to do, but it turned out after years that it didn't happen because I had to go to practice somewhere else and I had to go by train everyday for hours to get to the practice center and I had to do all my home work and everything in the train, so -- but if I would have stayed with football, two times a week -- I started playing tennis; I went everyday, that is how it turns out. At the beginning my father said it would be the better way.

THOMAS MUSTER: No. I was convinced pretty early. My father said you can play football. If you don't make it, tennis, you still can go skiing, but I think it would be the best choice, so we somehow worked it out, but it took me a while to get rid of football. I was playing tennis and playing football and in the same week and finals in tennis, playing football -- I was going back and forth in that area where we lived, so.

THOMAS MUSTER: I still didn't realize it yet. I am still trying to become good, so. ... We will see. It just comes. You start winning, winning, winning, and you become better and you become better and you are beating some players; became national champion at 16 and I mean, I held certain records in my age, so that is, I think, why I always believed that you really-- I always knew that I can play on this surface. I had a lot of success on this surface. It is just, as I said before, really, I think people always believed that I am only a clay court player. They haven't watched my results in the last years and they haven't watched my game in the last years, so to me, it is not a surprise. I think also the balls and the slower courts are helping a little bit to become better on this surface, but it is not a question of confidence. I always had the confidence that I could do it. As I said before, the biggest chance would be the spring next year that I am still 2000 miles away from being No. 1.

THOMAS MUSTER: Yeah, I like golf, car racing, and all kind of sports, track and field. I mean, I have a lot of respect for everybody who does sports, especially on a professional level.

THOMAS MUSTER: Yeah, I watched one just lately, so, I mean, for me, it is enjoyable to go to those events and... Right now I practice 3-4 times a week, Saturday morning I ran 15.

THOMAS MUSTER: No, I don't think so. I wish I could say that, but I don't think so. I mean, everybody works hard on that level. Everybody tries to be in good shape. We have seen that in the last years, that people improve and improve; especially physically, because otherwise it is untouchable to play 25 weeks successfully. You need to have a certain shape to prevent injuries and things likes that.

THOMAS MUSTER: Yeah, it looks like that, no? I don't feel it, but it shows every morning I look in the mirror, I feel I am getting older, so....

THOMAS MUSTER: Yeah, you feel it, but it is -- 28 is not 56 or whatever. It is -- I think that it is still -- I think you need more time and you need to schedule your tournaments better and your rest and practice sessions. It is experience; not only the age, I think. Not much. I mean, I am pretty aggressive on the court, but I am pretty quiet off the court, I think. But I try to have everything very straight up. It doesn't matter if it is at home, in my apartment, or if I have to do something, business or whatever, I try to be straightforward with everybody and which doesn't mean you have always friends, but I rather take it straightforward and people know what I am; what I am, and let them know, but I just want to have everything really straight and clean and no problems and if you want to call my and say what was in 1986 and on Tuesday, you know, I just go look in my books and I know what happened. So that is -- that is me. I am very, very straight forward. Well, he doesn't have to stop because I didn't win the U.S. Open so probably he was right, but for me it doesn't matter.

THOMAS MUSTER: I don't know. It is a long time. Maybe I don't play anymore next year in October, I don't know. (LAUGHTER). It is too far away or September, at least, I don't know. But maybe he doesn't play a year even if I didn't win the U.S. Open.

THOMAS MUSTER: Yeah, pretty much.

THOMAS MUSTER: No. It is only within myself. I have been asked that many times. Everybody had to play it which I think it is a mistake of the ATP, if we take it -- take up this issue. I think it was the same problem with opera singers and they went together and were union and they said, okay, you charge us 56% of tax you -- we put up the prices 56%, but the government realized then that they have to pay-out of their pocket so they have an exception, but if there would not be any tournament played or the ATP says, listen, there is no more tournament in France until you solve this problem, I think that would be easy to solve the problem. But this is a weak union we have and this matter, I don't feel myself really -- I think it is ridiculous to ask somebody who doesn't live in France or doesn't do anything in France to charge 56%. I mean, 20% is fine. 25, 30, even you said 30, but I think it is really ridiculous. I mean--

THOMAS MUSTER: We spoke about it. How can you come up and say three years back we are charging you 56%? They are coming up saying we have this law change in 1990; now you have to pay three years back. I don't know, people had to pay over $1 million, some of them. I mean, just like that. They send it to you. I mean, it is really -- I mean, this is really something. But France is special with all those things. I think I can play, but it takes me longer to adjust. You need to practice certain strokes and you know, I think it is -- probably need somebody to help you who really has experience on grass. We will see. I am the older one.

THOMAS MUSTER: I am not bothered. It is just the fact that I am the oldest. Somebody has to be the oldest.

THOMAS MUSTER: Kafelnikov. We saw Agassi. We saw Enqvist. We saw a few guys coming through this year and if we look at the whole-- a tough pick. We see guys like 22, 23 years old, so even younger, some of them, below 20, I think we can see the change slowly proceeding. I don't know how many guys, but -- but a lot are really young and --

THOMAS MUSTER: On TV, for sure. That is how I see it. I don't know what it is going to be like.

THOMAS MUSTER: I don't know. Maybe there is somebody coming up with materials, new materials; maybe there is faster balls, or slower balls, or, I don't know, we have changed so many things in the last years that I really can't tell where it is going. But I hope that the tennis, the economic is going to stay up so -- but that we are not going to lose sponsors, things like that. I think that is very important; that the credibility of the game is there.