NASDAQ-100 OPEN

March 26, 2004

Todd Martin

TODD MARTIN: Well, the disadvantages are obviously more apparent than the advantages. Those being not having an extra set of eyes to watch what you're doing, not having somebody to help with your practices, the motivation to continue to find different ways to improve. Sometimes it's difficult for one person to come up with all the ideas on his own. And, also, logistically it's difficult sometimes. You need, especially somebody like Roger who has got as much on his plate as he does, it's nice to have a little bit of help with some of those things. I have a feeling that people who are with him are taking care of that pretty well.

TODD MARTIN: Yeah, yeah, exactly. Just day-to-day stuff. The advantages, I think one more than anything, is that he's got autonomy in his career. I think sometimes there are those players that rely on their coaches too much. By taking on this venture on his own, I think he probably has to be a little bit more perceptive and a little bit more aware of what he's doing and what his opponents are doing both on and off the court.

TODD MARTIN: 5-2.

TODD MARTIN: First set and a half, I controlled play quite a bit. I had breakpoints , I had a few breakpoints early on in the second set. I think if I do that, the momentum keeps going my way and I'm in good shape. He saved those breakpoints for the most part playing well. Slowly, but surely, his confidence obviously rose. He was taking more aggressive swings at the ball than he had been. Late in the second set I started to struggle a little bit on my serve. Also, I felt because of his play, not necessarily because of mine. Then at 5-6, you know, he broke me. And then in the third he continued to play well and I continued to struggle a little bit. He got up 5-2. I felt like I was going to lose, but I knew I was a little fortunate because at 5-2 I was on what I thought was the easier side to play from.

TODD MARTIN: Because of the wind, yes. Difficult because of the sun for the serve, but I knew if I could get through my service game at 5-2, it was the best situation for me to be in, for him to have to serve it out. It seemed to get much windier right around then, and I struggled with it first point, he struggled on it, he had a matchpoint at 40-30 his ad, and he double-faulted that point. I played a couple good points, and from there it was -- actually, I got down love-30 at 4-5, but I played a real good four-point circuit there to win my serve to get to 5-all. And then from there I felt like he played a lot more like he did in the first set and I played a lot more like I did in the first set. I was much looser, and his ball wasn't as penetrating as it was in the second set.

TODD MARTIN: I like everything. I don't think he served real well today, but I thought he served fairly smart. He was conservative with his serve, knowing that I was going to be interested in attacking his second serves. So he made a high percentage of first serves. He moves tremendously well. I still am not sure which stroke is better. I mean, I've played him twice now; I have no clue, which is possible that they're about the same. But they're so different, I think that's a real asset. His backhand is real flat; his forehand has plenty of topspin in it. I think for some guys, one side is going to give them grief and for others, the other side is. I'm sure I said he moves well already, but I'll say it again - he moves really, really well.

TODD MARTIN: As far as his overall game?

TODD MARTIN: Sure. Because on top of it all, I think -- on top of what I've already mentioned, he fights like a dog every day, he works real hard on and off the court in training and I think he's a pretty perceptive guy and he's got a lot of -- you can tell he's got a lot of drive. I think it's just a matter of time before he fills in the minor gaps that he has. Today, until the very end, he volleyed great, too. I mean, I thought I made him hit a couple of tough volleys. It was all a piece of cake for him.

TODD MARTIN: Well, today was a lot easier than the other night when I played, mostly just because it was during the day and it wasn't -- we weren't under the threat of rain like we were on Wednesday evening. So it was just easier to see the ball. But it's terrible to play in. For sure, we look amateurish at times in these conditions. But I've been surprised at the level of my play occasionally despite the wind, and I've been impressed with the level of my opponent's play despite the wind. Hopefully, by the end of this coming week, we'll be playing in conditions that are a little bit more -- or that will reflect the quality of the tennis player a little bit more than just coping mentally and physically with the conditions.

TODD MARTIN: No, no, this is ridiculous. This is the worst it's ever been here that I've played in.

TODD MARTIN: It moves it (smiling). Nowadays, in normal conditions, if you hit a ball slowly in the middle of the court, you can expect either to be on your horse running left and right, or losing the point on that next shot. Here, just about anything can happen just because the ball moves. Obviously, the slower the ball is hit, the more it moves. But the faster it's hit, if it moves just a little bit, it makes it even more tough.

TODD MARTIN: Last year I played without a coach.

TODD MARTIN: I have a coach this year.

TODD MARTIN: I think that answers the question (laughter).

TODD MARTIN: Well, Mardy has made a lot of progress. I don't think it's fair just to look at the last few months. I think he struggled a little bit this year despite his results from San Jose and Memphis.

TODD MARTIN: I said despite his results in San Jose and Memphis. Other than that, he hasn't played great outdoors. But he's a fine player and he's getting better. The thing I really like about Mardy's game is that he's got weapons and he's got a solid foundation everywhere. In this day and age, there are a few guys like that. But since short of spring last year, maybe even since January of last year, I feel like he's played a lot better and has continued to improve. A loss like today, all credit to Julien, but this is not a lot about how you play the game of tennis; it's a lot about who competes better and who gets a few breaks here and there with a gust of wind.

TODD MARTIN: I think a lot of it is between the ears for everybody. I think especially our young players - Mardy, Robby, James - who have been out here the least out of the group that is doing real well, they all have the talent and it's just a matter of, you know, not even coping but putting together match after match of consistent, you know, just nice and steady tennis. I think that's a struggle, especially when you're as talented as these guys are, and as explosive as they are.