TENNIS 2014 ROLAND GARROS – 1st of June 2014. E. Gulbis d. R. Federer 6-7, 7-6, 6-2, 4-6, 6-3. An interview with Roger Federer
Q. Tough luck today. How do you assess your form today? What are your thoughts on the match?
ROGER FEDERER: Yeah, I mean, I guess it’s a bit all over the place, you know. Clearly very disappointed, you know, not to come through with the win. After the chance in the second set, fighting back in the fourth, not to play a better fifth set.
A lot of regrets here now. But I think Gulbis, you know, did a good job of hanging around and clearly coming back in that second set was crucial for him, I think.
So it was a tough match and I’m disappointed I lost it.
Q. That was quite a long injury timeout at the end of the fourth set. Did you have any troubles staying warm or keeping your focus during that period?
ROGER FEDERER: No, I mean, I went through the same thing against Tursunov, you know. So if the rules allow you to do that, you know, what can you do? There is nothing much.
It’s definitely something that hasn’t happened very often against me. Back to back matches, they leave the court, go for treatment and then come back. You don’t know what they were doing. Must be lower back or thigh or groin or something like that, because the rest they have to do on the court.
So, I mean, that’s part of the game, you know. In the past I guess it’s been abused much more than today, but still, what can you tell? He didn’t look hurt in any way. But if you can use it, you know, might as well do it.
Q. How hard is it to come out against somebody like Ernests? I mean, you don’t know who is going to show up, the Ernests who can really play or the Ernests whose head is someplace else.
ROGER FEDERER: Honestly, I knew what to expect. I know how he plays, and he’s got a good serve and all that, you know.
I just have my side. I just wish I could have played a bit better, just overall.
But still, you know, I think I got in the match all right. It was tough early on in the first set. So that was very big, you know, to win that tiebreaker. So I was very happy with that.
And then the second set was difficult, you know. I was up 40 Love when my serve got broken. I’d break right back, and then I have the 40 15 game I guess it was, and don’t close it out and things got tough from then on for like a half an hour for me.
But, you know, I kept fighting. And Ernests was also doing a good job of keeping the pace up on his serve and also trying to play aggressive with his backhand from the baseline.
So, I mean, I kind of knew what I was expecting today.
Q. I’d like to ask you about the future, because most of the people are saying the best Grand Slam for you, the one you can win is Wimbledon. Do you feel like that? Do you feel you can still win Wimbledon?
ROGER FEDERER: Yeah, I mean, I do feel so. Clearly first the focus is on Halle, try to defend my title there. It’s nice going back to a place where I have to defend something. Hasn’t been like this for a while, so that’s something I’m looking forward to.
Yeah, I think when I’m healthy, like I have been now for the last six to nine months, I think clearly I can also decide the outcome of the matches more than I could last year. So I”m very excited about my chances for Wimbledon now this time.
Q. Going back to the rules which let people go to have some massage, to stop the game in some way and come back, and yesterday we have a match when the player won just six points and lost the set 6 0, and then came back and was fantastic player. Do you think it is correct, is normal, and do you think is a normal game that you can do something, you can ask maybe for the ATP to do something for someone?
ROGER FEDERER: This is an ITF event, just by the way.
Q. Sorry.
ROGER FEDERER: Well, is three, five, seven minutes really that much of a problem? I’m just asking, you know. It’s actually not. It could be a little rain and it could be the same thing. Here it’s just a little timeout, and that’s it.
Clearly you can interpret it in so many ways, and I think, you know, you’re not allowed to go to the toilet anymore during the set. I came through my career in the beginning where everybody used to take a toilet break at 5 4 when you’re serving for the match (laughter). Everybody had to run to the bathroom at that point when I was younger. So that was like a given, almost.
Then there was an injury timeout maybe just before that, or right after that, depending on how you used it (laughter).
So I grew up with that. So now, I mean, it’s like a big deal when a guy goes to the bathroom like on the set breaks. Give me a break, it’s like, when it’s cold like this, you have to go to the toilet. Sometimes when you go deep in a match, sometimes you can have treatment because the rule allows you to.
But clearly you don’t want anybody to abuse it, you know. I hope that Ernests didn’t or whatever, whoever did it doesn’t do it for that.
But you can call the doctor and the trainer at any time and talk to them, you know, and then they can evaluate you, what the problem is and then the treatment starts.
Actually on center court everything happens much faster. I think of court 16 out of the blue there is a court call and then there is like five at the same time, don’t have enough physios sometimes.
So that’s a problem out there. But on center court it all happens pretty quickly, I think, and they are always on standby. It’s not that bad, you know.
But I just think as long as integrity is fine and the players do it because of obvious reasons, it’s okay.
But if it’s just to disrupt play for the other guy, then clearly it’s not really, really nice. Not very fair.
Q. Now, with hindsight and your experience, can you forget this defeat? It was Robredo in the US Open. There was Wimbledon. Are you going to forget this defeat, or do you think you missed an opportunity?
ROGER FEDERER: For every match you can’t necessarily explain why you lost. Sometimes you’re more disappointed; sometimes less.
I’m not mad, but I’m not happy, either. Because I missed too many opportunities. I did not play like I wanted to play.
What it boils down to is I lose in five sets. I had so many opportunities. Obviously I don’t want to try to answer questions to try and explain those mistakes. I’m going to try and think about something else and I don’t have to prepare for a match in two days, anyway (laughter). What’s done is done.
I’m happy to leave now and do something else. Stakhovsky, that was a shock because I knew the danger, but I did not expect to lose in Wimbledon in the second round after so many years.
And the defeat against Robredo, that was a difficult year last year in the US Open. It was probably the toughest for me. It was wet, wet conditions. It was sort of strange game on the Louis Armstrong. It was just difficult.
I was trying to understand where I stood. But this time I was in good shape, and I think I could have done better. That’s why I’m probably even more disappointed this time.
