TMS MONTE CARLO

April 20, 2000

Arnaud Clement

Q. You had recuperated from yesterday?

ARNAUD CLEMENT: I was better than yesterday and the day before. I was running faster than the other days. Fortunately otherwise I wouldn't have touched many balls. I was not feeling bad, although I had problems starting up the match. In the end I was really feeling good.

ARNAUD CLEMENT: His game was really a problem for me. I tried to play a bit high, to chop the ball, and everything. It was bothering him a little bit, but not enough. He was hitting right, left; he was very precise. He missed some shots in the end of the first and the second set, but overall, he was very solid.

ARNAUD CLEMENT: Yes, the first time was a long time ago. He improved a lot since then and me too. The second time I was exhausted. Today was a good match. He was very solid. If I had to remember one match against him it would be this one.

ARNAUD CLEMENT: I didn't want to change things, but I wanted to play a bit longer, deeper, that is all. At one stage he was playing short. And he really beat me off. He was hitting a lot, but when I played better he was not able to play winners anymore. In fact, it wasn't bothering me too much. As soon as I was touching the ball he was putting it back. That was an extra shot. I don't know, today I didn't serve very well. I would have needed some free points on my serve each time - an ace on my side would have been enough maybe to put things on my side in the second set. I had to work hard on his service games and on top of it I had to work hard on mine. On his serve it is normal, but on top of it, he returns very well, and even if I was succeeding in having a good first serve it had to be a really excellent first serve to bother him a little bit.

ARNAUD CLEMENT: Yes. When the rally was going on it was better.

ARNAUD CLEMENT: I believe that today I played against a guy who is stronger than I am. I don't believe I can be disappointed. I really fought as much as I could. The tactics I had today was the right one, I believe. With my game, that is the way I had to play today. But he was stronger.

ARNAUD CLEMENT: Yes, exactly the same. I can try to play differently. I could try to hit the ball early; to hit the ball with a lot of rhythm, but when he made mistake today it was because the ball was a bit high, a bit chipped and a bit short. That is the kind of thing he doesn't like so much. I didn't speak with Eric yet. I didn't see him. But that is really what I believe.

ARNAUD CLEMENT: Yes, certainly. He can hit very strong shots with the forehand and the backhand.

ARNAUD CLEMENT: Maybe not all the same. I was going to say something stupid....

ARNAUD CLEMENT: But Andre Agassi hits harder, more precisely, but I believe that from the baseline there is something similar in both games. . There are not many players who I play with that much rhythm. It is a big quality.

ARNAUD CLEMENT: Doubles.

ARNAUD CLEMENT: Barcelona, Munich and the qualies in Rome and Hamburg.

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