News & Photos / Interviews / Interview with Tommy Haas

R. FEDERER/T. Haas

6‑7, 5‑7, 6‑4, 6‑0, 6‑2

An interview with:

TOMMY HAAS

THE MODERATOR: Questions in English, please.

Q. So one point away to have the break in the third set, leading two setsto love. How frustrating is it in theend to have lost this match?

TOMMY HAAS: Yeah, it's frustrating, because you knowyou're very close. You know, on thatbreak point, you win that point you're serving for the match. So obviously goes through your head.

I thought I played adecent return, you know. I didn't reallywant to go for it too much, but I wanted to keep it deep and cross court. He ran around it and played a really precise,nice forehand inside out that almost touched the line for a winner.

That's just the situation where you justhave to tip your hat and say ‑‑ when you go for it and you're rewarded likethat, that's too good.

Q. Youwere so close to win. Do you have someregrets now?

TOMMY HAAS: Well, when you're that close that winning, ithurts, obviously. You know, when youplay against the second best player in the world on center court and you knowyou have a chance to maybe close it out and maybe serve it out for the match,and, you know ‑‑ but this is tennis. It's a sport. It's never overtill the last point, and we all know that when we go out there. It's just what happens.

So, you know, if I lookback ‑‑ I haven't had time to really look back through the match. At some point, I'd like to see it myself. Right now I know that I gave it all that Ihad out there today, and I came up short.

Q. You didn't feel angry? You didn'tfeel like you let a big opportunity slip?

TOMMY HAAS: How am I supposed to feel? Sure, I'm disappointed, you know. I mean, every time you go out there it's likea boxing match, you know, you lose and it's tough, you know. You have to swallow it and accept it when.

Especially when you areclose like that it hurts more. You know,be realistic, it's not easy to lose a match like this. But it's over now, and, you know, you have afew days to recover from it, and then you have to look forward.

Q. Did you think at all, after what had happened obviously with Rafaelyesterday, that it was an extra good opportunity because of the pressure onRoger?

TOMMY HAAS: Yeah, I mean, you know, you can talk andthink about it all day long, obviously. Djokovic is out, Nadal is out, maybe Roger was feeling it a little bitknowing that this is maybe a great opportunity for him to win and he putslittle extra pressure on him, as well.

You know, I just wentout there, tried to play as good as I could. I came close to maybe beating him today, which would have been nice nomatter where it was at, because it's been a really long time.

But, you know, in the fifth set, again at 2‑AllI made a few slight errors, unfortunately, and he just kept playing better andhitting the winners when he needed them.

Q. Doyou think back to 2002? You beat him atthe Australian Open. Does something likethat come to your mind today?

TOMMY HAAS: Yeah. You know, we've had always, most of the times, really good tightmatches, you know. But lately I've beencoming up short, just like so many others, unfortunately. You know he is just clutch when it comes downto the big points. He just excels likeonly maybe a few others on the tour right now.

He's done it for solong now. It probably just comes naturalto him. You know, maybe there's anotherway that I haven't figured out yet.

Q. Can you compare this in any way to a match in a big event when youplayed a big player like that, when you either won or you lost? Is there another match you can sort ofthink this match reminded you of?

TOMMY HAAS: What?

Q. Does this match remind you of any other match in a big event when youeither beat a big player or lost to a big player, had a good chance?

TOMMY HAAS: Yeah, I mean, you've come back from winningsome big ones and you've lost, you know, being up a little bit in the bigone. One that hurt for me the most, orone that is up there, is probably when I was up two sets to one against Safinat the Australian Open. What year wasit? Maybe 2002.

Started like raining inthe fourth set, and it took like 30 minutes for the roof to close. My body just totally changed and lockedup. I couldn't move anymore, so thatwas, you know, painful. Today ispainful, too. I mean, you know, it's justas simple as that.

Q. The crowd took sides with Roger pretty noisily at some stage. Did it affect you in any sense?

TOMMY HAAS: Not really. You know, I think it's pretty much normal that that was going to happen,as well.

It didn't really annoyme, no.

Q. How do you think the fourth set affected you and Roger for the fifthone?

TOMMY HAAS: Not much. You know, after the third set, obviously it was mentally a little toughto swallow for me, because like I was saying, you know, 3‑4 break point, maybeserving it out. At 4‑All, I had, I don'tknow if I had game point. Maybe Idid. I double faulted and then I savedthe break point, long game, and I lost it. He served it out. That was tough.

Then beginning of thefourth, you know, I was trying to pump myself up and keep going. Then 30‑All, I just made bad volley errorthat I put like one centimeter out and he broke me right away. Then he just kind of let loose and played avery good service games, and another one of my service games, I came close towinning that.

At 4‑0, I just kind of looked ahead. We both took a toilet break, and when we bothcame out we both knew it was just going to come down to a fifth set, maybe likein the '06 Australian Open.

I think we were both pumped and knewthat this was it. At 2‑All he broke me,and that was pretty much the key for him.

Q. Didyou feel in the third set, when that began, that he was sort of relaxing andgetting back into himself?

TOMMY HAAS: The fourth or third? In which set?

Q. In the third when he's down two sets and then he starts to come back,did you feel that he was relaxing and more confident?

TOMMY HAAS: No, I think he was ‑‑ it was very tight,I think. You know, I think at thebeginning it's swirling in there in the stadium, so I think it was tough in thebeginning, also.

We both misshit a lotballs, and I think trying to keep the balls deep with heavy spin was the keyfor both of us. I think in the middle ofthe third set we both knew there was a chance for me to finish him off.

I think at 3‑4, break point, he knew he hadto come with the shots, otherwise he's going to pack his bags. He came up with the goods.

Q. Doesthat encourage you for the rest of the year?

TOMMY HAAS: For me, obviously looking back, this was agood French Open for me. Looking forwardto the rest of the season, yes.

Q. How shocked were you by Rafa's loss yesterday? Who do you pick to win now?

TOMMY HAAS: Yeah, it was obviously shocking in someways. I think for all of us, itwas. You know, Soderling played a greatmatch. I think what Rafa said was prettyright in the press conference, that he was very defensive and played veryshort, which was unlike him, especially in the past six, nine months. I thought he played a lot more aggressive onother surfaces, as well.

But, you know, thishappens. Soderling played reallywell. You know, I think now that,obviously, the attention goes to Roger. I think if he's going to win the French, this certainly becomes a verygood time for him to do so. Personally,I wish him luck.

Q. When he hit that inside out forehand on the break point at, I guess 3‑4in the third, what went through your mind? It was almost on the line, wasn't it?

TOMMY HAAS: Yeah, it was very close. You know, when he hit it, it lookedgood. You know, you kind of hope for itto maybe go a little wide, but it didn't. I was still trying to fight in that game. You know, went back to a game point for himand then back to deuce. He came up withsome good serves. It was tough.

You know, the next mostimportant thing for me was trying to hold serve at 4‑All. It was another deuce game with game points,and I saved one break point. When youlose those important points, it's mentally tough to digest.

Q. How do you, in your mind after all these years of playing, when he couldhave missed it by that much more and you had the break and maybe you serve outthe match, after all these years, how do you make sense of this in tennis?

TOMMY HAAS: You know, it's just, I guess, the way it is,you know. I mean, like I said,he's ‑‑ you know, there's no secret to why he's been there where he hasbeen the last five years and what he has accomplished.

So you just got to tipyour hat and say, That's why he's Roger Federer, you know.

Q. In that vein, you've had the good fortune in your wonderful career toface many fantastic players. Who do youthink the greatest of all time is?

TOMMY HAAS: That's a tough question to answer,really. If you go ‑‑ you can golook at it right now, who has the most Slam titles. Pete's still up there. Roger would have to win a few more to passhim. I think if he does, then in my eyeshe deserves rightfully to be considered the greatest ever.

Q. And if he wins here?

TOMMY HAAS: Yeah, I know, I have to think about itmore. But if he wins here, you know,he's probably the greatest ever.