WIMBLEDON

June 27, 2000

Jan Michael Gambill

MODERATOR: Good evening. Mr. Gambill.

JAN-MICHAEL GAMBILL: Sure. I knew that I was playing Lleyton I think for quite awhile now, since last week. I was getting pretty pumped for it the whole time. Very excited for it. I think we have very exciting matches when we play. The previous times have been great matches. I respect him a lot as a player, and as a person. I think going out there and playing against a guy like that is enjoyable for me. I think that I'm playing good tennis right now, so I was excited to go out there and have a good battle. I really played well.

JAN-MICHAEL GAMBILL: I think I learned a lot last week. I learned against Byron. Why I lost that match is because I was hitting the ball a little bit too short. I was hitting the ball hard and running him, but it's just too short. My balls were landing just at the service line or past the service line. That's not going to get it done. I knew I had to come out and hit the ball deep and hard and serve well. I did all those things. I also fought well in the third set. I was down a break; didn't let it bother me really, and stayed in there. I was prepared if I had to go to five sets and to hopefully come through. Played a good match. I'm happy for it.

JAN-MICHAEL GAMBILL: Well, I think, you know, going into matches is always going to be the same against Lleyton. I know he's a fiery player. I know how he's going to play. I know how I have to play in order to win, in order to stay in there. He's been doing great this whole year basically. He's just proven time and time again how good of a player he is, how tough and fierce of a competitor he is. That's sort of the way I'd like to be out there, as well. I think playing a match like that is very helpful for me confidence-wise.

JAN-MICHAEL GAMBILL: It's about time that I really come out and continue to play well. I've been really sort of sidelined by various reasons: injuries last year a few times, and confidence problems in the past. I can play well against these guys, I think, and I can beat them. I can really play well. I think I can get my ranking up a lot higher than it is right now. I need to come out and play a lot more matches like this. There's no reason I can't stay out there and stay mentally tough the whole time. What that match proves to me, once again, is that I can, against a top guy, play a mentally tough match for three straight sets if I have to, and even go further.

JAN-MICHAEL GAMBILL: It was a tough third set. I think he played a good game to break me there. I made a couple errors on where I was hitting the ball. But it's tough. He returns well. He played a tough game. But I stayed tough and really forced him to make the errors and made some good returns there I think at, what was it, 3-5. Also at the 2-5 game, he had I think two or three set points where I battled, even serve-and-volleyed once. Knowing how well he returns, it's tough to serve-and-volley. I surprised him and hit a deep volley. I kept it tough and really showed him maybe in that match that I wasn't going to give up. That's part of it.

JAN-MICHAEL GAMBILL: Well, sometimes it's just that things will break down. My fundamentals will break down. I'll be thinking about, why is that happening? What is making me not play as well as I can when I know that this is the way I can play. It's tough when things like that happen. My footwork sometimes gets a little lax. It's not natural for me to be a quick mover, much like Lleyton. I had to work on it a lot harder. It's something I've been working on. I think my footwork has improved a lot. Also my fundamentals. Today I was out there and didn't really make any fundamental errors, which is great. I had very few unforced errors, as well. That means that I'm moving my feet well. That's the way I'm going to win.

JAN-MICHAEL GAMBILL: That's a tough question. The problem with that is that the Olympics is really at a tough time of the year. I go over and I play that Asian circuit. I also play the European circuit. It's really going to be a long haul for me to go over and go to Australia, come all the way back, go to Asia, then go all the way to Europe. It's going to be a tough call.

JAN-MICHAEL GAMBILL: To tell you the truth, my tennis hasn't been in the place where I could really schedule the Olympics in because unfortunately I've had some bad tournaments and haven't had enough good ones that I could really say, "This is the time that I can go and play the Olympics when I don't really have to focus on the Asian tournaments." I need to play well there and play well in Europe, as well. I have some points to defend at the end of the year, nothing till then. It's time for me to make a jump. Not knowing if I was going to be on the Olympic team, you can't really schedule it. It's tough.

JAN-MICHAEL GAMBILL: I think it would be unfortunate. The main thing is I really need to think about me and really playing well this year. One of the things that's always on my mind is Davis Cup and how much I want to play that and play for my country. It's unfortunate that all that stuff is scheduled at once. It's tough to really make all the decisions. We'll see when the time comes.

JAN-MICHAEL GAMBILL: I think that's been the big mystery for me. I've never really had a great result at a Grand Slam. I've never come out and played well and continued to play well in three-out-of-five set matches. That's the thing that I need to know up here before going out, knowing that I can win it in five sets if I have to. I lost a real tough five-set match last year, but I was down two sets to love, came back and lost in the fifth set. That kind of match is great, even if you lose it. I think the more I play Slams, the better I'm going to do in them. I think I can be up there. I think I can really play well in these tournaments and the smaller events as well.

JAN-MICHAEL GAMBILL: Well, you know, I think that we're good players. I think we can do well. It's very tough to live up to what we have to live up to, frankly. Pete has done unbelievably well. I think he's the best player of all time. That's very hard to live up to. Andre coming back and doing as well as he has is great. I can keep naming them. Jim Courier, who I look up to a lot, has done so well. All these American guys, it's tough to live up to that. That's not exactly my goal. I'd like to do that, but I'm going to really just look to keep improving my fundamentals and my game. If I somehow make it to anywhere near that level, I'd be very happy.

JAN-MICHAEL GAMBILL: Well, you know what, maybe a little bit. There wasn't as many people asking as many questions for sure after I did well at Indian Wells that year and had big results. I've had some big results every year, but not enough of them to really create and confirm the interest. I think that's what I need to go out and do.

JAN-MICHAEL GAMBILL: Well, because Lleyton Hewitt, I compare him to one of the guys I look up to the most over the years, Jimmy Connors. Lleyton Hewitt is such a fierce competitor that he goes out there and he doesn't allow himself to ever have bad matches really. If you give him an inch, he takes a mile and he beats you. That's why he's such a good competitor. That's why he's so tough. He just knows how to win and doesn't ever give up. I can learn from that.

JAN-MICHAEL GAMBILL: Well, I think I played a good match out there today. I think that I overpowered him from the baseline and I served big. I don't know what really he could have done different. Maybe he could have served a little better in the first set there. I think that I played a great match, and that's why I won.

JAN-MICHAEL GAMBILL: Yeah, I tell you there's definitely some nerves. Playing Stadium Court is pretty amazing. I played only one other Stadium Court at a Grand Slam and that is the US Open. I have to say that this is even more amazing, just the feeling of the court is almost ancient. It's a neat feeling to be out there. It's an honor. I had a great time and played a great match. I'm very proud of it.

JAN-MICHAEL GAMBILL: I had a double-fault there I think at 30-15. But I went for a good serve, missed it way long. Served some big serves, served well when I was down. I was thinking then at ad-out, "If you lose this point, it's just going to be a tiebreaker anyway, you have a great shot to win the tiebreaker as well." I was going to go out there and hit a big serve like I had the whole match, hopefully play a solid game. I was pretty focused today. Didn't really pay attention to what was happening. I just was thinking about the next point. That waivered a little bit in the last game, but not much.

JAN-MICHAEL GAMBILL: You know, I'm actually very happy with the cars that I have right now. I'm excited to go back and drive them when I get home. I just got new rims for my XKR, 20-inch rims. I'm looking forward to the Jaguar F type that's coming out in the next year. That will be the next time I add to the collection.

JAN-MICHAEL GAMBILL: It's sort of hard to explain till you're out there. It's just this feeling, knowing how many great players and people that I look up to, how many great matches have been played on that court. It's just so perfect. The people are so close. It just is this ominous feeling, but it's a great feeling. It's an honor to play there.

JAN-MICHAEL GAMBILL: I think it's very important. It goes to show that I've been in Europe for a long time now, over two months, and in the past that's hurt me. In the past I've been ready to go home. I'd lose the match and say, "Doesn't matter because I'm just going to be happy to be home for a while." Not this time. I've had a great trip in Europe. Had some better results this year. I'm not looking to go home.

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