WESTERN AND SOUTHERN FINANCIAL GROUP MASTERS

August 9, 2002

Juan Carlos Ferrero

THE MODERATOR: Questions for Juan Carlos, please.

JUAN CARLOS FERRERO: I think I improve a lot since last year coming to this year, because normally I play it all my life in hardcourts in Spain. When I start in Spain, I just have hardcourts there - no clay courts, just hardcourts. So I practice a lot of time in hardcourts, like three or four years in a row. So that the reason I like to play on hardcourts. In greenset, is not -- if it's not a faster court, you know, like - I don't know - indoor like Moscow or like this, it's like impossible to play. I like to playing like greenset, like here or US Open or Australia. I like to play a lot.

JUAN CARLOS FERRERO: Yeah, I am happy. Yeah. Because always when I come to United States, I cannot play good, you know. In the US Open I never pass two, third round. Also here last year I did just second round. I play well in Montreal last year, I did quarterfinals against Rafter. But, you know, I wanted to play very good tennis here because I know in United States it's important to play good, you know. I am very motivated to play good here like I am playing, and if I play good in the US Open will be a good effort.

JUAN CARLOS FERRERO: I think he play it -- he plays very good in hardcourts also because his forehand, it's going to the court very fast, you know. He can hit the ball wherever he want very fast, and his serve is also very fast. I think he plays at the same level like clay court and hardcourt. Maybe he can move a little bit better in clay courts, but in hardcourt I think he is a good player also.

JUAN CARLOS FERRERO: Yeah. I start to be a friend of him like three years ago when I play with him the first time in the Mallorca Open tournament in Spain. He beat me in three sets. It's like the first year I go in the professional tour. That time I start to be friend of all the Spanish people.

JUAN CARLOS FERRERO: I don't know if it's normal, but, you know... We have to do, you know? It's all the time we spend together in the tournaments. A lot of time we have to play with friends - like tomorrow or like the final French Open, like the final in Monte-Carlo, you know. Because there is a lot of Spanish good players in the tour, so many times you have to play together.

JUAN CARLOS FERRERO: Yeah. Maybe it's hard because you have to play against your friend, but also you know perfect his game. I know perfect his game, and he knows also perfect my game. So it's not easy to play.

JUAN CARLOS FERRERO: Of course is not easy to play against the kind of player is Arthurs because is impossible to read where is gonna go his serve, his first serve, you know. You have to choose one side and go to try to return. And, you know, is not easy to serve very good because he put pressure all the time with my second serve. He goes to the net all the time. You know if he breaks to you, it's like -- it's not impossible, but very difficult to break back again. You have to go to the tiebreak or, you know, sometimes you break to him, 6-4.

JUAN CARLOS FERRERO: You know... I know, but it's really difficult to play against Arthurs. You have to do like winners wherever you can and, you know... I like to play with this kind of players because I read him very well all the time. If you have opportunity to break, you have to do it. I like to play like this kind of players.

JUAN CARLOS FERRERO: Yeah.

JUAN CARLOS FERRERO: I don't know, you know. I beat him in hardcourt and in clay court also, so maybe I go to the courts with a little bit more chances than him because I beat him the last five times, as you said. But of course you gonna go to the courts with a lot of motivation because it's semifinals and he's playing good. He is not gonna forget the last five times and he gonna want tomorrow, of course - like me.