Sony Ericsson Open second round 2007
© Sony Ericsson Open

 

T. ROBREDO/K. Kim
6 2, 6 4

An interview with:

TOMMY ROBREDO

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. What have you been told, if anything, about your role with the Davis Cup match against the U.S.?
TOMMY ROBREDO: What, what?

Q. What have you been told by Emilio, if anything?
TOMMY ROBREDO: Nothing. No. I hope today or tomorrow, because he's going to talk to me and say if I'm on the team or not.

Q. Is it a difficult decision, you think?
TOMMY ROBREDO: I don't know. That's his decision. As I always say, I am one member of the team, and if they want to make me play, I'm going to go. If not, I'm going to go home and support the team. I'm never going to say nothing about if I'm on the team or not. It's his decision, and I'm going to support his decision and the team.

Q. This could be four Top 10 players in this Davis Cup. Could be. Could be a fantastic Davis Cup. How badly do you want to be part of that?
TOMMY ROBREDO: Well, if I'm on the team or not, it's going to be a fantastic tie any way. It's not a matter if I'm there or not. It's a matter if I'm not there and David Ferrer is there, it's 13 in the world, or 15 in the world, and it's playing unbelievably good, no?
Anyway, playing Spain against U.S., it's going to be a really nice tie. I think it's a great. A lot of crowd and a lot of press there. And it's a tie being watched all over the world.
Obviously, as a member of the Spanish team, I always want to support the team. On the first time I was not supporting it, because I thought it's not going to be healthy for me to go there. And after last season, and the start of the season, I was very tired and I needed rest.
That's what I told the captain, and he just accepted that, and now I told him that I'm ready to be on the team if he wants me.
If he needs me, he's going to call me, and I'm going to go there.

Q. The two countries have had some good Davis Cup ties in the last two years. Is there a real rivalry building up in Davis Cup between these two countries?
TOMMY ROBREDO: I have nothing against Andy, or nothing against Blake or the Bryans. It's just always when you play Davis Cup tie you want to win. You are playing for your country, and supporting them.
Then in the end it's great, but it's nothing against them. It's just or nothing against you. It's just that we want to beat for our country.

Q. Rivalries don't have to be negative. They can be something people look forward to, because the two countries have played each other before, and there's always an exciting competition?
TOMMY ROBREDO: Yes, but I know it's not like when Barcelona and Madrid, they are playing. They are always playing for the ties. When you play Davis Cup you play with 16 teams. You don't care if you have to play U.S. or Belarus, you just want to win.
U.S. and Spain are both great teams. But it doesn't mean we have rivalry, no.

Q. Are you expecting to find out tomorrow, or would he take both of you to Winston Salem and decide later?
TOMMY ROBREDO: For the team decision?

Q. Yeah.
TOMMY ROBREDO: Well, first of all I don't know when the captain has to say the team. Maybe they have to say it tomorrow, and then we have to know today. Or maybe they can tell it like in one week, and then it's not in a hurry, no? The thing is I don't really care now much Davis Cup. I'm just caring about my tournament here.
I'm still alive, and I'm going to play tomorrow in the third round. And if he don't put me on the team, and I win the tournament, I'm going to be so happy. If he puts me on the team and I win the tournament, I'm going to be so happy as well.
In the end, I just want to be focused on that tournament. If he wants me on the team, I'm going to keep be here in Miami until we move to Carolina, no? And if not, I'm going to get my plane back to Spain and prepare for the clay season.

Q. Are you surprised they chose Winston Salem and an indoor hard court?
TOMMY ROBREDO: What will you do? If you were the U.S. captain, you would not put clay. You would not put outdoor hard. Of course you have to put the best chance for your players. And grass, they did four or five years ago when I was on the team.
But anyway, right now, grass is not I don't know, it's not easy for them as well after playing a lot of time on hard court to move to grass, no?
And after Rafa making finals of men and women, maybe they don't like it so much. And obviously, putting a faster indoor court, it is the best way for them.

Q. Since the players' meeting last Tuesday night, have you had a chance to sit down with Etienne and try to talk things out a little bit more than things got talked out last Tuesday?
TOMMY ROBREDO: I think he's too busy right now with a lot of meetings.

Q. How badly would you like to sit down with him one on one?
TOMMY ROBREDO: I think he should want to sit down with me in some other place with me.

Q. How do you think it will resolve itself?
TOMMY ROBREDO: I don't know. He has a difficult task to do now. I think he's a great boss, and he want to support so much tennis. He thinks that his feelings have to change a little bit, instructor of the ATP, and destroy a few Master Series on clay and put another one in because it's a new in Asia, because it's a new market that we have to go there.
But the decision he wants to make, it's not great for Europe. And right now, Europe is the best market in the world. We have two Grand Slams there, four Master Series, and wanted to change that, the clay court players, we're not happy with this, because we're going to have one less Master Series.
And also, the indoor players are not happy, because they're going to have one Master Series on hard court, and now there are two.
These changes are always difficult, but I don't know. I think after meeting here, a lot of players we were against the changes. If I would be him, I would try to catch and sit with the top play players to explain them why the changes, and I know to let them happy, no?
Because in the end, if the players, they are not happy, the tour is not strong enough.

Q. While he's proposing changes in Europe, there are no changes proposed for the U.S. Is there some resentment building up among European players toward not the American players, but toward the United States in general?
TOMMY ROBREDO: Well, if you ask me, in U.S., it is difficult to change. They're operating a great thing now with the US Open series. Obviously, it's a great market, and we have to agree with this.
If you tell me what's happening here, I think, it is the best thing that can happen, no? Because U.S. is one country, no? It's so big, and they have a lot of tournaments.
Europe is 24 countries, no? You could never have a (indiscernible) because Roland Garros they don't care if the Barcelona Open is good or not or if Rome is good, because in the end it is difficult because they are different countries, no?
But obviously, I think there is a lot of other things to change for the players than to cancel Monte Carlo and Hamburg as a Master Series, and changing Madrid and moving to Asia.
I think that not all of the players want to be playing in U.S. two weeks, sorry, two tournaments in four weeks as in Indian Wells and Miami, no? I thinks personally if you want a great Master Series, they all have to be the same.
You cannot put a Master Series like Indian Wells with 96 players; playing in Madrid, 48; playing in Paris, 64. If you want a great, high standard of the tour tournaments, look at the ATP and the Grand Slams.
Everybody knows that it's 128 players playing in two weeks, and the Master Series all should be the same if you want to create the highest tour.
They are always saying in Indian Wells and Miami they have a signing for 50 years, something like that, and it cannot change. But in the end, I think that's not good for the tour.

 

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