TENNIS MASTERS CUP


November 12, 2008


Andy Murray

SHANGHAI, CHINA

A. MURRAY/G. Simon
6-4, 6-2

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. Although that finished quickly, it was obviously an extremely tough first set which could have gone either way at one point. How did you see it?
ANDY MURRAY: Uhm, well, I think that I was -- although he did come back, I was always ahead in the first set. Was nearly 5-Love up, and then he did come back a bit.
You know, that tough game at 4-3, once I got through that one I felt pretty comfortable. Yeah, then the second set, you know, I dictated a lot of the points, moved him around a lot, you know, didn't make too many errors.
You know, the more I got him moving, the more I changed the pace of the ball, he started to make more mistakes.

Q. Was his comeback in the first set more your level dropping or his going up?
ANDY MURRAY: I mean, every time you play against a good player, they're gonna come back, you know, they're going to start raising their level. You know, I missed a couple of shots that I shouldn't have at 4-1 -- sorry, at 4-0.
And then, yeah, he played a couple of good games. You know, he's confident just now. It's not like I was playing bad tennis. I wasn't missing shots that, you know, I should always make.
You know, the guy just started to play better.

Q. How do you feel after two matches now? What's the body feeling?
ANDY MURRAY: You know, it feels much better than it did after my first match. Coming over this way, it takes me a long time to get over the jetlag, you know. I have struggled with it. You know, when I came to the Olympics I struggled my first match. You know, my legs felt really, really heavy.
You know, maybe I just need more time when I come over here. But today I felt perfect. I felt like I could have gone, you know, three, four hours if I had to. That gave me a lot of confidence 'cause I knew that, you know, I was not doing as much running as him. You know, if I could keep that up, it was going to be tough for him.

Q. Unless our maths are incorrect, you're through to the semifinals. How does that feel to be in the last four in your first Masters Cup?
ANDY MURRAY: Yeah, it's great. You know, tough group. You know, Roddick's very, very experienced in these competitions. Still, you know, No. 5 or 6 in the world. You know, he's been there for a very long time. You know, to beat him is never to be sort of underestimated. It's a big win.
You know, then Simon obviously is playing the best tennis of his life and he's in the top 10. To beat a couple of top 10 players back to back is great. The Masters Cup is obviously a huge, huge competition for all the top players. You know, I've got a chance of winning it now.

Q. We don't know what the outcome of this match is going to be, but how do you approach a match against Federer, knowing that you're already there whatever the outcome?
ANDY MURRAY: You try and win. I'm not gonna try and lose to Federer. I've beating him three times; I'd like to make it four.

Q. You have received your second victory at the tennis Masters Cup. At 21 years old, you reached the final of the US Open and have two titles in the ATP Masters Series so far. Tim Henman only won one tennis Masters Cup. Do you think you have excelled Tim in your career?
ANDY MURRAY: No. No, I don't think so.

Q. I know you want to beat Federer, but how do you lift yourself, though, when you know you've got Saturday coming, if not Sunday? You've got to keep something in the tanks. How do you find a balance there?
ANDY MURRAY: I don't try and find a balance. I try and beat Federer. You know, I mean, ideally I'd like to knock him out of the competition if I can. I'd rather not have to play him twice in one week, you know. He's the best player ever.
Obviously there's a lot more pressure on him to win than me. It will be the first time I've played him when I've not been under pressure, you know. If I can -- I don't know if I've won the group. I don't even know how it works. I didn't even know if I'd qualified yet, so...
If I've already won the group, or not, I guess I can almost decide, you know, do I want to play whoever the first in the other group or the second or whatever. You know, a lot of ways you could look at it.
But I plan on trying to win the match. I think if I win that one, I pretty much knock him out of the competition, 'cause I can't see Stepanek beating Simon.

Q. You've been here in Shanghai for the first time. What do you think about the atmosphere here in the stadium and maybe on the streets? Maybe you've met some Chinese people now. What do you think?
ANDY MURRAY: I haven't met too many Chinese people, apart from the ones that have been waiting at the hotel for autographs and stuff. I mean, the atmosphere in all the matches has been great. You know, I think they really understand tennis well and they get very excited during all the matches.
I haven't met too many people, but I really enjoy myself here. You know, the tournament has been put on really, really well.

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