Lleyton and Alicia's interview after the mixed duboules win over Czech republic
Is that like getting out of jail?
(Alicia) Better.
(Lleyton) I don’t know, I haven’t been in jail.

It’s a big relief, I guess. Obviously when you’re in the mixed doubles, 6-4, 5-2 down, you haven’t had any opportunities really to break most of the match. Somehow I got out of my service game and then I served pretty well to save a couple of match points. Then of all the servers it was going to be Jiri serving, and we had to break him to stay in the match. It was a bloody good effort to get out of it.
Where did the game turn, do you think?
(Lleyton) I think definitely that game at 5-4 with Jiri serving. The momentum just changed. We saved one match point on that game, he made a first serve and I felt like I put in a really good return. I knew Bedanova wasn’t going to cross so I felt like I had half the court. I just had to hit a crosscourt backhand in. I made him play a low volley, and he probably shouldn’t have gone for a drop volley like he did. Once we got that next point, Alicia put up a tough sort of lob – not a really high defensive lob – but a tough one, and Bedanova couldn’t quite…it was one of those awkward ones you don’t know whether to volley or smash, and she smashed it into the net. I knew as soon as I got break point that I wasn’t losing that next point. I think that was the turnaround – those two or three points in that game.
You’ve been in matches where the momentum has shifted – just like that.
(Lleyton) Well, I’ve been in some matches where it’s done that. Probably the Tommy Haas match a couple of years ago in the Australian Open, two years ago in the Australian Open, in the second round. I was 5-0 down in the second set and I got out of it and won that 7-5. I was 4-1 down in the second and won that 6-4. I was 2-0 down in the third and won that 6-3. It doesn’t happen very often, and when it does happen you’ve got to take it.
Alicia, you’ve had an incredible week. Did you think you could play that well on a sustained performance?
(Alicia) Yeah, I’ve been practising really well the last couple of weeks. I really expected myself to perform the way I have been. But, no doubt, with the quality practice I’ve come into this event with a lot of confidence. I mean, I have been playing great, but I haven’t been surprising myself too much – a couple of shots here and there – but on the whole I’ve really expected myself to play at this level.
The fact that you’re now in the final, Alicia, Australia has a chance to win two times.
(Alicia) Yeah, absolutely. This is our second year having a shot at it, Lleyton and myself. Come the finals, that’s going to be tough either way – Belgium or the US. They are quality players. We’ll be doing our best. We’ll have that ‘never say die’ attitude like we did out there today, and hopefully things will fall our way.
Will you two sit down after tomorrow’s finalists have been decided and have a five or ten minute talk about what to do, come Saturday?
(Lleyton) Not really. I think going into the singles matches we’ve both got to concentrate on our own games. At this stage I don’t think we can worry about the doubles too much. Our priority is to go out there and obviously try and get the job done in two matches and make it a lot easier and not have to have too many heart attacks out there on the court again. You know, Alicia is going to be watching Kim and Serena play, and I’m going to be trying to…well, I know both James and Xavier well. I’ve played them a few times, so I’m going to know how they play anyway. If it comes down to the mixed doubles then, after the singles, we’ve played enough together. We grew up together. We know what each other is thinking as well as anyone around the place. We’ve just got to go out there and believe in it. I think if we don’t spend too much time dwelling on ‘I’m going to serve here’, ‘I’m going to do this’, and trying to work on it…I think in mixed doubles it’s a situation you’ve got to play point-by-point a little bit and see how the flow is going and how the opposing girl, for me, is playing, and just little things.
Alicia, is that your thought on the mixed as well? It just seems you’ve been improving your combination all week. How much does that help you in the finals?
(Alicia) Yeah, like Lleyton said, we’ve played enough together, really, in the past – especially the last couple of matches. Yeah, when we’re walking out there and change of ends, obviously we’re discussing it, but it’s not like we sit down and map out a game plan or anything. Like Lleyton said, we just have to check the flow of the match and see what the guy is doing and ways to counteract his big serve or to get on top of the girl’s serve. We just have a chat about it when we’re out there.
Lleyton, you’ve either got to play against the world number one or your girlfriend – which one would you prefer?
(Lleyton) I’d prefer my girlfriend. :hearts: Even though it would be extremely difficult, I guess, to go out there and play. Yeah, I’d love to see Kim and Xavier – obviously I’m closer to the Belgians with Kim. :angel: :hearts: If we’re both in the final, obviously one of us is going to win it, and I think if you’re not playing for the same country, that’s as well as you can do. I’m pushing for the Belgians, hopefully.
Lleyton, you said in the beginning of the tournament it was important to be here because you have three matches. Now you have four. How far away are you from your best level?
(Lleyton) Still a bit away, I guess. The other day, two days ago, I felt like I played really well against Dominik. I served and packaged my game together really well. Tonight I just didn’t serve well – it’s as simple as that. I just made life too difficult on myself. I served a lot of double faults; I didn’t get a high percentage of first serves in. When you play a guy like Jiri, he was going for it out there on second serves. He was putting me under pressure and it paid off. In other times there were chances where maybe if he went for it he could miss it, and I may have held a couple more service games a little bit more easier. Still, saying that though, I fought the second set out not playing great tennis. I had two break points in the first game of the third set and I had chances. I can’t remember the first one, but I dumped a backhand when I went for the winner crosscourt on the second one. I played a very slack game the next game to go down the break and that was the set, basically, from there.
Is there some extra special pressure for you playing Melbourne as a Grand Slam as opposed to the US Open or Wimbledon?
(Lleyton) Yeah maybe there’s more outside pressure, I think. I don’t put any more pressure on myself going into the Australian Open. I really look forward to it. It’s something that everyone knows by now I love challenges and I love going out there and competing and seeing where I’m at. The Australian Open for me, that’s sort of a goal. I couldn’t care less if I win it in ten years or this year. But, If I could win it someday it would be fantastic. Still, saying that, I think the way that I handled the situation being number one seed at Wimbledon, that’s a pretty prestigious thing, to be number one seed at Wimbledon and go through the tournament. Apart from one little hiccup there in the quarterfinals, I played pretty faultless tennis there. I don’t think it’s any more pressure on myself than going into Wimbledon as number one seed.
Reports are the courts are a bit quicker this year. Peter McNamara puts a ten per cent estimate on it. Does that suit you?
(Lleyton) I don’t know how he puts a percentage on it. Last year I thought it was extremely slow. I thought it suited a lot of the clay court players that came over. I think they performed a lot better on that kind of court. I’ve grown up on rebound ace. I’ve hit on Memorial Drive so many times, and every year it’s not exactly the same. It’s such a tough surface to get exactly the same every year – it’s nearly impossible. So I think it’s always going to be a little bit different. If it’s a little bit quicker, I think it’s probably a good thing. I think the balls over the last year have probably been a little bit heavier. There was that one year that I played Corretja and ended up losing to Norman, I think, in the fourth round. That year was lightening – that was real quick. From what I’ve heard I don’t think it’s going to be anything like that.
The weather is more of a factor with rebound ace than other surfaces?
(Lleyton) Yeah, it is. Obviously the ball is going to come through a lot quicker if you’re playing a day match where it’s 38 degrees or 35 degrees, rather than overcast. You just don’t know with Melbourne weather either. There’s a good chance that I’m going to be playing night matches as well, hopefully if I can stay in the tournament, at some stage during it. That’s going to be a totally different situation. A night match is going to be a lot heavier conditions. It’s going to be tougher to put the ball away. You’ve just got to go out there, I guess, and weigh it up on the day, and who you’re playing against and see what happens.
Alicia, is it quicker, Melbourne Park, from your experience at the training camp?
(Alicia) I thought it was a little bit quicker than last year, but not a great deal. I just think the top layer, the top surface, just seems to be a little less grit in it than last year. I thought they were a little bit quicker. (Lleyton) It’s hard to tell when they first lay it, I think. I hit on Adelaide as soon as it got laid and it was pretty slow, I thought, straight up. It’s meant to be pretty similar, I think, to Melbourne Park. The more you hit on it, by the time it gets to the Australian Open tournament I think it will be a lot quicker than when it’s first laid anyway.
Just back to the finals for a minute. Apart from having a look at the singles, will you have any special preparations? An extra practice session?
(Lleyton) Not really.
(Alicia) Stick with what works, I reckon.
(Lleyton) Yeah, I’ve been playing golf on my days off, that’s probably a chance.
Will you have a game of golf?
(Lleyton) I’m not sure. I’ll see how I wake up. It’s pretty late anyway
So you have one practice session each scheduled?
(Lleyton) Yeah, I’ll hit once just with Jason and go out there and do exactly what I’ve been doing. It’s been a good schedule for us, we’ve been playing every second day. It’s like a Grand Slam where you get that one day off where you can have a bit of a sleep in and relax and not worry about your match so much. And go out there and have a good hit out and sweat it out for an hour or so, an hour and a half, and sort of relax for the rest of the day.