05/09/2010 16:35 CEST - INTERVISTE

J. Blake - 04.09.10

An interview with:

JAMES BLAKE
 

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. You had the two breakpoints first game, and then the tiebreak you had that forehand lined up. Did you feel like you found your rhythm or game at any point tonight, or was he just too tough?
JAMES BLAKE: You know, I don't think it was tough for even Novak to say he found his game in that wind. It was tough, tough conditions. He did a great job of handling them. He's one of the best defenders in the game which makes it tough on a night like that where I need to rely on my power and speed to sort of dictate and move forward.
It's tough when you need to get in position to hit those shots and to get into position, and the ball can move one way or the other. You are not going to hit it as cleanly. If I don't hit it perfect, he's too good of a counter puncher. He hurt me too many times when I was in position and in my head to win the point. He did a great job of turning it around.
Obviously a couple points could have changed a few things. I mean, it would be a little optimistic to say it would have completely turned around the match and I would have won, but might have given me a chance if I win that point at 4 All in the breaker, that break point that gets called out and really is in, and he missed, that goes the other way, they don't call it, I'm back in and on serve in the third. I felt like I was serving well enough and doing a pretty good job of holding after that first set.
A lot of things could have changed, but they didn't. He played well on a night where there were tough conditions.

Q. Where do you go from here?
JAMES BLAKE: I don't know. I'm going to take a little break. I need the body to completely heal up. I felt better than I have in a while the last couple matches. I know I still need to feel really 100% and ready to go after this to move forward to feel like I'm really playing well again. So I'm going to take a little break. Probably start in Stockholm. I think that's in about six weeks.

Q. Were there any emotions walking off the court? Are you leaving here thinking, I'm going to be back here next year?
JAMES BLAKE: I really hope that wasn't my last match on Arthur Ashe Stadium. I definitely want to be back here next year. If it was, you know, I competed my heart out. I did everything I could. But I think I got more in me and I think I'm going to be back there. Maybe more night matches, some more excitement for the crowds, some more good times.
You know, I definitely believe that. I hope it comes true next year.

Q. When you were close in the second set there, can you feel how you can turn that crowd in your favor?
JAMES BLAKE: Yeah, I had that big point down 4 2, was it, to get back to 4 3 where he hit a dropper. I got up to it. That's a tough shot, especially in the wind, to just direct the ball.
Most of our shots are hit with a lot of spin which helps with the wind. But when you're up there, it's below the net, all you can do is really push it. With the wind, that can knuckle and go any way.
To control that, to get up to it first and control it, I was pretty happy with myself, as I'm sure most of the crowd noticed. The crowd got up on their feet. Had another big serve the next time, just hit the tape with my forehand.
If that had gone in, the crowd was definitely on my side, was going to help keep pulling me. Put pressure on him serving at 4 5. For sure, they would have helped me.
That's an advantage I have playing here. Didn't execute well enough to get them on their feet enough tonight.

Q. When you say you feel you have more in you, is that because you feel like you're not physically at your best so you don't know right now whether your best isn't good enough?
JAMES BLAKE: Yeah, I mean, I think even with the fact I haven't had the same preparation I would like to normally coming into the US Open, I got to the third round. I lost in straight sets, but I put a little scare in the No. 3 player in the world. And I beat two pretty good players.
So even if I'm not at 100% right now, I don't feel like I'm, you know, hurting the game by being out here. I'm not on a pity tour just getting beat up first round every week by kind of nobodies. I lost to a pretty darn good player. I'm playing okay and I know I can play better because, yeah, the preparation can be better.
I'm going to have more time on the track, more time on the court, more time in the gym. I'm going to be able to do it if everything is healed up. Once that happens, I definitely think I have more in me. There's a chance I can go six weeks, come back, blow out my shoulder, and maybe this was my last match an Ashe.
Once I got hurt in '04 and got sick, I never planned on this career as a marathon. I tried to treat it as a sprint, every match being its own sort of entity, working hard to win that. If it's my last, it's my last. If that came at 25 when I blew out my knee, if that came at 30 when I do something to my back, so be it. I'm going to treat every match as a sprint and just do my best every time. When it ends, it ends.
I don't feel like right now I'm out there looking for charity. I think I can play with just about anyone still, and I don't think I'm at my best physically right now.

Q. That wind tonight at its worst, you play in conditions like that before?
JAMES BLAKE: Played once in Miami, it was similar to that. It's rough. It's not fun for anyone. It makes just about every shot tough. Probably doesn't look as clean to the fans either 'cause they don't appreciate how difficult it is to play in the wind, I don't think.
It's usually a little more of an equalizer, so you'll see a lot of upsets. I don't think you saw that today. But it's tough. The guys at the top of the game did a great job of playing solid and knowing how to compete in that wind.

Q. What do you have to do physically to get yourself back so that you're not going on a charity tour?
JAMES BLAKE: Well, I mean, I don't think I'll ever come to that. I have too much pride and too many hopefully plenty of other options. I hope this isn't the only thing if my life, is tennis. I'm only 30.
I have a feeling I'll be retired by the time I'm, being optimistic, by the time I'm 35 or something, so I have a long life of other things to do. If I'm not competing, I'm not having fun, I'm not at a level where I think I should be, then I hope I've got enough options outside of tennis to call it a career, hang up the racquets and be proud of my career.

Q. Where was Thomas and the rest of your gang tonight?
JAMES BLAKE: They were all there. My brother, he's usually not one that people miss with that crazy hair, 6'6", dreads halfway down his back. He's usually pretty vocal. They were in the box.
I had a lot of fun people still coming out to watch. I'm happy, even though the last day and a half has been crazy dealing with tickets, my brother, and actually my buddy Evan did a great job of keeping everyone happy, I hope. I haven't checked my phone to see if anyone is mad at me because of where their seats were. I think Evan said this is around 100 seats we have to get for people. I don't know if I made money at this US Open with all the tickets I just paid for, but it's worth it, because there's nothing better to spend money on than your friends.

Q. How much of a guide has your mom been for you?
JAMES BLAKE: She's been great. I couldn't have asked for better tennis parents. They had different qualities that made a huge difference in my life. My dad preached work ethic. If I went out and hit balls for an hour, he wanted me to hit balls for an hour and a half. If I hit for three hours, he wanted me to hit for three and a half. He was always pushing me, and he practiced what he preached, which makes a big difference to see someone doing what they believe in and working as hard as possible.
My mom is more of the soft touch and the caring one. If I hit for 10 minutes and I was happy, she was happy. If I hit for six hours and I was happy, she was happy. She really just wants what's best for me.
It's interesting because I feel that when I lose, she's down with me. She's feeling my pain. And when I win, she's feeling my joy. I've never experienced anything like that. I haven't been a parent, but it's something that I sense all the time. It means a lot to me because she honestly does just want me to be happy. If I were to be done playing tennis tomorrow and go back to school and I'm in class, she's happy if I get an A. She's just happy for me, anything I'm doing.
It's so great to see someone that just wants the best for you. She's going to guide me the best she knows how. Obviously she was never a pro tennis player, so it's tough for her to know all the ins and outs of the game. She just wants me to be happy, if that's when I'm winning matches, when I'm with my friends, or on the golf course. It's hard to find genuine people like that. Obviously, I'm biased, but she really is the best tennis parent I could have.

Q. Do you have any ideas of what the options are after tennis? Is it going to be inside or outside the sport?
JAMES BLAKE: That, I don't know yet. I love this sport, so I think there's a possibility in the future of me doing something inside the sport. I kind of want to get away from it for a little while, I think, because tennis has been such a large part of my life for the last 20 years. Really, it would be fun to maybe go back to school or just relax and get away from it and see if anything else creates the same kind of passion I have for tennis.
I know how many retired athletes have told me that you'll never have anything that compares to the competitive nature you had when you were a pro athlete. I really, really hope and think that I'm not going to be one of those people that misses it so much, that, you know, is always depressed because they don't have it anymore, because I had it taken away from me for about a year and I thought I was done. That was a big quandary for me at the time, whether I was going to be happy without tennis.
I made a decision then that I would be, because I'm lucky enough to have a ton of friends that support me no matter how good I am at tennis.
I'd like to get out of tennis maybe. I really don't know for a little while. I know I've already told all my friends that some of them are going to come visit me and I'm going to be playing golf for six months once I'm done. I'm going to be home. I travel 30 weeks out of year. I'm going to be in my bed for at least six months straight where I'm not getting on a plane, I'm not getting on a train, I'm not getting on a bus, I'm not doing anything. I'm staying at home, playing some golf and relaxing. Then I'll see what motivates me.
I know from being somewhat sedentary when I was sick, it doesn't suit me well. After a little while, I want to get up and do something. After a little bit of time off, I'm going to figure out what's going to motivate me and get me there.
As I said before, I'm treating tennis as a sprint. I'll still in the moment of this being my No. 1 priority. I don't know for sure. But, like I said, I'm hoping there's going to be plenty of options.

Q. How is your golf game?
JAMES BLAKE: It's not that great, but it's getting better. It's something you can do pretty poorly and still have a great time. So I'm having a lot of fun playing it.