Quotes of the day: Wednesday 1st July
Leyton Hewitt
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Andy Murray on if he knew that Miss Scotland was coming down to watch him…
“No, I didn’t.”
But pleased that she made the effort?
“Well, she came to watch at Queen’s. Yeah, I mean, any time any of my friends or people – one of my best friends from school came to watch me the other night against Troicki, it’s nice.
“So regardless of whether it’s a Miss Scotland, which I know is the angle you’ll be going for, I’m happy that one of my school friends came to watch (smiling).”
Has he ever played tennis with her?
“No. My mum used to coach her a bit, but I never played with her.”
Andy on if he’s received any other notable messages this week, following on from the Queen and Sean Connery…
“I got a handwritten note from Cliff Richard this morning. Apart from that, no other ones.”
Tommy Haas on if he is reviving the serve and volley…
I don’t know. When you get older like me you try to get free points as much as you can. It’s been working so far. It’s been good when I’m serving well, first‑serve percentage has been pretty good lately. I feel like at the net I can do some good stuff. So far so good.”
Lleyton Hewitt on Andy versus Andy…
“I think it’s gonna be a tough one for Roddick to win. I think, when I’ve seen Andy Murray at his best, I think he matches up extremely well against Roddick.
“It’s going to be an interesting match. A couple years ago I saw them play here because they were in my section, and Murray took care of him convincingly. And Murray’s a lot better player now than he was then.
“Roddick’s gonna have to play a helluva match to beat him.”
Lleyton on who he thinks will win the Ashes…
“I don’t know. Feeling pretty confident at the moment. You guys don’t talk about the last one. You just keep going back to ’05. Everything on the TV is ’05. There was one in between that. Everyone’s forgotten.”
Andy Roddick on if he’s used to this kind of weather…
“No, this is cold from where I come from.”
Really?
“No. I mean, I grew up in Florida and Texas. It gets offensively hot in both places. You know, I’m not too concerned about the heat, to be honest.”
A-Rod on what he is expecting from the crowd and what he thinks the atmosphere is going to be like playing against Murray in a semi…
“I’m looking forward to it obviously. We might be able to count the people for me on this hand. But I think it will certainly be something to remember. I think the crowd’s gonna be electric. I think it’s gonna be a great atmosphere, and one that I can certainly appreciate, even if it’s not for me.
“I’m just gonna pretend when they say, ‘C’mon, Andy’, that they mean me (smiling).”
A-Rod on his comment from last year (after a tough second round exit) that it was like ‘watching a Rolling Stone concert from the eighth row when you’re used to seeing it from the first row…’ what’s it like now?
“Getting closer. I can see what Mick Jagger is wearing now.”
A-Rod on who he thinks Rick Astley will be rooting for…
“Hardcore journalism. We have a show called 20/20 back home where they ask questions like that. Just hardcore.”
Roger Federer on his accomplishments, and how important is it to him that he’s reached 21 straight semi-finals…
“It means a lot to me. Just being so consistent for so long and reaching it again, it’s amazing. It’s hard to believe I achieved it, because looking back it’s not just I’m looking back on a few weeks or a month or a year or so, it’s really way back now.
“And even before that, I was in finals, I won a major before that as well. I just had it interrupted by Guga there, I guess. But it’s been quite a streak I’m on, and I’m happy it’s still alive.”
Ivo Karlovic on if he can explain what Roger does differently than other players against his serve…
“Oh, it is only because he is better than everybody else. That’s it.”
But has he seen a player out there that can beat him?
“Well, this year, honestly no.”
And what was it that made him nervous? The fact that he was playing on Centre Court, the quarter-final, or the fact it was Roger on the other side of the net?
“Yes, everything, all of the above.”
Novak Djokovic on if he thinks Tommy has any chance in the semi-final…
“Yeah. I mean, look, it’s a semi-final. Tommy hasn’t lost still this year on this surface. He’s playing really well and he has nothing to lose against Roger, so of course he has chance.”
Juan Carlos Ferrero on if Andy’s stepped up from Queen’s…
“Well, I saw him serving very well again. And, when you are serving like this and you get two or three points every game free, it’s very difficult to lose.
“I think he’s one of the best returning guys that there is on grass court. He returns everything, doesn’t matter how you can serve. Difficult to play like this.”
