XXVI OLYMPIC GAMES

July 27, 1996

Todd Woodbridge

TODD WOODBRIDGE: No, not really. I don't even know if they finished last night. Did they?

TODD WOODBRIDGE: No. It is sort of an odd combination. I would think they would be difficult because Andre can return really well, and he's just going to be pretty slap-happy, I would imagine. And if they do get towards the end of the tournament, he is still in the singles, I would think you will find it won't be his priority.

TODD WOODBRIDGE: I still think for someone like Mark and I playing against a Washington and an Agassi, we would be still favored; and still feel, you know, fairly confident that our experience together under pressure would take us through. Doesn't necessarily mean that that would be the case, but, you know, I would think that we would have a lot more going our way. You know, but it is great. I think it is really good that Andre took up the challenge to play. I am really impressed that he did that.

TODD WOODBRIDGE: Yeah, I had played pretty well. I just felt in the first set Wayne came out with some really big shots under pressure. He served well whenever I got a slight chance in a few games early in the set, and then in the tiebreak he came up with three really good passes where I put the pressure on him, and made him have to hit them, and he did that. In the second I just hung in there. And then I got to the tiebreak, played fairly well to get back to the tiebreak, and then made a couple of unforced errors; missed an easy volley, you know. I had to look where Wayne was moving at 1-Love; hit the tape with it, and I felt -- I really felt like I was pretty close, you know, if I could have snuck through that second set. He had played pretty well, at a high level, and perhaps I could have gotten through. So it is a good match. I think it is one of the better matches I have played in the last couple of months. And mentally I hung in strong. I was sort of pleased. I played tactically the way I wanted to play. And just on the bigger points, I think Wayne came through with some really -- basically winners, you know, some forcing serves that I really didn't have a play on and some big passing shots and big forehands.

TODD WOODBRIDGE: Yeah, I had a bit of trouble with my serve today. I didn't serve as well as I would have liked. And actually, when I went down the break in the second, I switched rackets, and I went to sort of a little different guaged string, and that sort of - I started -- my percentage from down there really picked up, and I was aggressive with my serve. And that made a difference to the way I was able to construct the point from there. I was a bit more in control than him having a second serve having to go at.

TODD WOODBRIDGE: No, I went to a thinner gauge. But I was able to -- because of the humidity here, I have had trouble getting the rackets tight enough. So I got to a smaller, thinner gauge to get my tension tighter in the rackets, and that helped.

TODD WOODBRIDGE: All of a sudden they didn't like any call that I was getting, turned around, laughed at them. I said, don't you like me up at this end? They all thought that was great, and they were all on my side from there. It worked for me. I was planning on getting a little bit of an edge.

TODD WOODBRIDGE: That is who they are playing next?

TODD WOODBRIDGE: That will be actually a big test, I think, for them. Both Ellis and Wayne are good doubles players. They have played a lot together. But Ellis and Ferreira have done well this year with different partners, and Wayne can probably play well with anybody. He is a good serve and volleyer, good returner, so that is going to be a test for them. If they get through that, then I think you can say that they are going to be a challenge to doing well.

TODD WOODBRIDGE: Yeah. Well, now the singles is finished, I am a bit disappointed. But I have put up a good performance, so now I can -- I guess now all the energy can go into that. I do feel good because I feel like I have played some good matches here. I have been under a bit of pressure - that always helps. Probably easier for me than for Mark when he has been in doubles only for this tournament so I feel like now I can knuckle down and concentrate and try and do our job like we do in other tournaments.

TODD WOODBRIDGE: Yeah, he beat me the last Olympics, so at least I am not underestimating -- I am going into tomorrow's match; I know that we have got a pretty tough match.

TODD WOODBRIDGE: I don't know if he has looked ahead. We have all tried not to tell him too much, he really has a chance at a medal. His draw is wide open. There is no one in his section that I don't think has him beat before. It is a matter of what Jason did at Wimbledon where he knew he had a good Wimbledon; went out; concentrated hard; played good tennis and beat who he should and Mark has got that opportunity. Probably he doesn't have the experience Jason has had, but he has definitely got a chance to go a long way in the tournament so I hope he, you know, he is enjoying himself at the Olympics. When he has played his matches he has really focused well and played well, so I hope that continues.