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WIMBLEDON


June 21, 2010


Novak Djokovic


LONDON, ENGLAND

N. DJOKOVIC/O. Rochus
4-6, 6-2, 3-6, 6-4, 6-2


THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. Do you feel like you got out of jail tonight?
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Meaning on...

Q. As in you were lucky to escape with a win tonight?
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Well, I don't think I was too lucky. Actually, I had a kind of big match and big challenge with myself. As soon as I was starting to play aggressive and well, I was winning in the match.
Fourth and fifth set, especially in the fifth set, I showed the real game, the game that I should play.
You know, it was great match, of course. Rochus is a very tricky player, especially on grass. He has a very low balance and he rarely gives you free points. You have to work for all the points.
So I dropped the level of serve, and I started to give him too much opportunities and he used it. So that's why I did have a big struggle against him.
But I was very happy that in the end I managed to find the real game.

Q. Whenever you went off for the break to bring the roof across, what did your team say to you to get you geared up for the remainder of the match?
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Well, you know, it is all part of the sport, and you have to deal with it. I think the break kind of helped me a little bit, because I didn't feel great at that moment on the court.
So to have a little half an hour of the break and just relax and focus and reset my game and my mind was helpful.

Q. Confidence-wise coming into this championship, where do you feel you are with your game at the moment?
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Well, it hasn't been the best couple of months, you know, of the year. But still, you always find the motivation to do well in Wimbledon and any Grand Slam, especially here, for me, the most prestigious one and most important one.
I really have a big desire to go far, but I'll take one match at a time. I'm very proud to take the win tonight. It was a tough match, but everybody plays tennis, you know. You cannot underestimate any opponents, even in the opening rounds.

Q. Wimbledon completely oozes tradition, so how do you imagine a press conference near midnight playing at Wimbledon? Do you feel like you're more in New York or somewhere?
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: It was interesting. You don't get to see a lot of late-night matches in Wimbledon history. Now with having roof and lights gives us that opportunity.
So I'm happy that in a way my name is in the history books of playing late in the night, so I'm just happy to grab a win.

Q. How would you sum up your experience playing under the roof and under the lights?
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: It was very humid. I think Murray and Wawrinka played last year a long match under the roof and lights. They were saying how humid it is and, especially if there is a lot of people watching you, sweating a lot.
It's different conditions. Definitely different conditions. Kind of suited to my game at that moment, and I managed to go through.

End of FastScripts




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