AAMI Kooyong Classic

Lleyton Hewitt Media Transcript

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AAMI Classic Kooyong Lawn Tennis Club

Questions for Lleyton Hewitt

(12/01/13)

MS KELLEY:  Well, Lleyton, congratulations on your second AAMI Classic Championship.  And we'll have questions now?

MEDIA QUESTIONS:

Q      Well, Lleyton, I guess that couldn't have worked out much better for you the way you played this afternoon?

LLEYTON HEWITT:

A   Yeah.  No, it was good.  I felt like every match I got better and better and more confident, and especially my ball stroking.  Today I just felt like it was really coming out the middle of the racket right from the word go, and I was seeing the ball well.  I moved really well and, you know, I felt sharp out there which is, you know, it's a good sign. 

Q      Are you little bit surprised yourself a little bit how well you played this week?

A   Not really.  No, I've - like I felt like in practice I've been hitting the ball well.  I did a lot of hard training in November, December and, you know, as I said a couple of days ago Roachie and I - you know, we got out every training session with a purpose to try and improve and do certain things.  Sometimes the conditions on this - on centre court here at Kooyong it's tough to play clean tennis.  But against Berdych and even more so today I felt like I hit the ball as clean as I have in a long time.

Q      (Indistinct) three guys (indistinct) what is it you want it to tell you?

A   Oh, you know, next week's totally different obviously.  Playing a major and over five sets and, you know, it just gives me confidence so that, you know - Del Potro or three of the biggest guys - you know, biggest servers out there and I was on their serves for a lot of this week which is for me a big sign of where I am and - and how sharp I am on the court and - and especially on second serves.  I was putting a lot of pressure of their service games.  So for those big servers if they are missing their first serves at least they know that, you know, I'm going to jump on it and do something with it.  So, you know, that was one of the most pleasing things this week.

Q      Have you put in a request for your first round match?

A   No, I haven't, no.

Q      You don't want - don't care really - - -

A   No, no.  I - I believe I'm playing Monday so - yeah, I don't know when yet.

Q      You're getting better all the time though?  I know you have been (indistinct) but is a return to the Top 10 or 15, is that a realistic goal for you?

A   If I played every week I'm sure it is.  Yeah, I don't know how much I'll, you know, play again this year.  I'll still pick and choose and, you know, I've got a family look after as well and my priorities as I say is the - you know, at the start of the year the Davis Cup ties.  Making myself available and - and working back.  Like which weeks I want to play before a Davis Cup tie and then the Grand Slams and - and obviously for me, you know, especially the Australian Open, Wimbledon and the US, they're the - the three that I feel like I can, you know, have my best chance of - of going deep in.

Q      So the ranking is not really - - -

A   It's not important to me, no.

Q      You don't care about that - - -

A   Not a lot, no.

Q      We have to ask you about that first round (indistinct)

A   Oh, it was a first round.  It - you know, there's not too many easy first rounds though and - and when you're unseeded you know that - you know, within the first two rounds you're going to draw a seed.  You know it's going to be someone anyway.  So last year, you know, it was Andy Roddick and I obviously Raonich's (indistinct) in, you know, in second and third rounds.  And, you know, Tsonga the first round at Wimbledon and now I've got another Top 8 seed obviously.  So, you know, Tipsarevic is a quality player.  He's - he's improved a lot in the last year and a half, two years and, you know, it's going to be a tough match but, you know, I'll be ready for it.  I know I feel like I'm hitting the ball well.  I've done - you know, it's nice to know in the back of your mind you've done all the - all the right preparation to go out there and just play.

Q      Do you feel he's maybe slightly vulnerable given that he didn't play much here this week, and he appears to be a bit troubled by that - - -

A   Yeah.  I don't know how much trouble with - yeah, I'm planning on him being 100 per cent come Monday.

Q      What do you (indistinct)

A   Yeah, I'll be doing recovery obviously this afternoon and this evening and then tomorrow I'll just have a light hit at Melbourne Park and obviously get ready for - for Monday.

Q      You mentioned how good you feel.  Can you remember the last time you felt this good (a) with your form and (b) with your fitness going in to an Australian Open?

A   Not really, no.  There's always been some kind of niggling injury so - yeah, I don't know.  It's been a while.

Q      Would it be five, six, seven years?  Would it be that?

A   I don't know.  I'm not sure.  Yeah, obviously I can't remember.  You know, two years ago I was not doing too bad though.  You know, when I lost to Nalbandian.  That match point in that first round and a pretty high standard match, and I obviously won here in Kooyong the week before as well.  So, you know, obviously closest memory as to how felt last year though at Melbourne Park, which was - wasn't fantastic.

Q      Your court movement in all three matches looked - looks like it's back to what it was.  Do you feel like it's that way when you're out there?

A   Look, it's pretty good.  Today I felt like - from the back of the court if I could get his serve back I felt like even as a big a ball striker as he is I still felt like I could run down a lot of his shots, which gives me a lot of confidence and obviously because I feel like I - you know, I can, you know, counterpunch so well out there.  It's always been one of my strengths and, yeah, if I can keep making him play and - and get that extra ball back then, you know, the pressure builds as well especially over five sets.

Q      Fitness-wise no problems - - -

A   No, that's never been a problem.

MS KELLEY:  Anyone else?  Thanks very much.  Thanks, Lleyton.

INTERVIEW CONCLUDED

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