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ATP MASTER SERIES MADRID

October 18, 2006

Fernando Gonzalez

MADRID, SPAIN

Q. Congratulations. It looked as though you might win in straight sets, and then he fought back pretty well, didn't he?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: He's tough to play. The change is tough. I was playing in Vienna on Sunday. I played five matches pretty hard. I come here, you don't have enough time to rest, you don't have enough time to practice. I wasn't feeling so good physically on tennis.
I was set in the break, and there was some part of the match that I couldn't feel I put the ball in because the ball sliced too much here. It's tough. You start to play better and better, and maybe in the game I did one or two errors, and he broke me back. That was the key of the second set.

Q. Roddick said he found it very difficult to adapt from Vienna to here because the conditions are so different. What did you do to get used to the ball flying so much?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: It's tough. With my best shot, sometimes you get panicky. You feel you're going to miss any one. You try to play to the middle of the course and you miss anyways sometime. It's tough.
The original side of the court you have a player who was practicing more days than you, and he could more adapt to the conditions. But it's tough to play especially in the beginning here in Madrid.

Q. In North America you've described to us how you'd lost all the weight, lost weight.
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: Yes.

Q. And that had improved your movement and your motivation. Do you feel that you've kept that going, the improvement from the weight loss?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: Yeah. I feel much better physically. Last year, this year, I feel much better. I feel that I can play longer. I can run quick. Quicker reaction. And that's very important in my game.

Q. Was another factor today your mental strength, your determination to win? Was that an important part of it?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: At the end?

Q. Today, yes, at the end.
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: Yeah. At the end it was -- I was trying to put the ball in play. I did it for three sets. For four and five I have to try something different. I did two forehand and I finished the match. Maybe it's the right play because I won the match. You never know.

Q. Was your opinion on the Hawkeye system? Do you like it?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: What?

Q. What's your opinion on the Hawkeye system?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: I like it. But I'm not really lucky with that.

Q. It's a good innovation you think?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: It is absolutely. It's fun for the fans. For us it's better because sometimes you can do something about a strange call, you know. You can ask for it, and you see.
Q. Fernando, you were feeling real pain on your shoulder, on your back?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: I think it's been something during the night, I slept not so good last night. I was tired. It was something that was annoying me.

Q. Did you think about withdrawal at any time?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: No, not at all. I'm in good condition to keep fighting.

Q. Do you feel like fighting even against Davydenko?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: Yes. Even Davydenko, no matter who I need to play against. I'm not as I wish I were, I'm not as fit, but I'm ready to play.

Q. You served not so fast today?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: Yes, I know, I know. It's not been my best match, but this is something tennis has. We're at the end of the season. It's tough, but you need to be professional and consistent. You're not at the same level throughout the season.

Q. Fernando, it seems you have said you are playing more with your heart than with your head. Was it hard to find your game?
FERNANDO GONZALEZ: It has been tough, yeah. I was serving to the limit. He was playing far better than me. And the most important thing is that I kept my serve until the key point of the match where the person who doubts loses, and I took advantage of that moment.

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