O. ROCHUS/N. DJOKOVIC
6-3, 6-7, 6-4


Q. Were you having problems breathing on the court? Looked like the conditions were a little bit heavy out there.
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Yeah, it was a bit humid, but, you know, he was making me run a lot so points were really long. That was exhausting.

Q. Why do you think it's always so tough when you play him?
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Sorry?

Q. Why do you think it's always tough when you play him?
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Because he picks up the ball very early and he runs all over the court. And if you he was playing really well today, so I want to congratulate him. Definitely he deserve it.

Q. Obviously it's a tough out for anybody, but do you feel like since Serbia something's missing, your serve, your offense, something, confidence?
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Well, that's obvious. I don't feel great on the court, and everybody could see that, so...
Life goes on, you know. I've gotta rest now and try to make up for these defeats on clay courts.

Q. Your return is such a strong part of your game. Today was it you just weren't executing a return, or was his second serve better than what...
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: No, I wasn't attacking. I was just kind of, you know, waiting for him to make the shots, and it wasn't the right approach.

Q. Are the conditions slower than usual? It seemed like the rallies just weren't as fast.
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Yeah, it's quite slow and different from Indian Wells. Indian Wells the ball bounces much higher than here. There's not much bounce. For him it's good from the baseline.


Q. What made him such a tough competitor today for you?
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: I guess, you know, he was motivated to win against somebody who's better ranked, top player. He didn't have anything to lose. He coped well on the court with all the things.

Q. Considering you didn't bring your A game, you were still in there.
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Well, I was trying. You know, I was trying.
If you look at the overall score of the whole match, you know, he was the better player. But still I had some chances to get back in the match.

Q. Did the rain delays affect you in any way, first at the start, and then mid match?
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: No, not too much. Not too much.

Q. What do you think it says about men's tennis that the No. 2 seed can have such a difficult time in his opening match?
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: It happens, you know. You know, everybody plays tennis. Since I don't sometimes you feel great on the court. You can win against anybody. Sometimes you don't feel confident. It's a mental game definitely.

Q. I mean, that first set it just seemed like you weren't there was something missing there. Did you feel from the start there was something wrong, or...
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Well, I just didn't play well. That's it.

Q. There were some jeers when you were coming off the court, which surprised us up in the media area. Were you are scratching your head? Any idea what that's about?
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: No comment.

Q. Your serve is one of your weapons. Is there something technically wrong with it since maybe...
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: You know, I'm working on it. As I said, you know, when you don't feel on the court well, when you don't just feel your strokes, and, you know, serve, which is a very important element in the game, today's tennis, if it doesn't go well, then, you know, opponents feel the pressure that you're feeling.
Made a rot of double faults when I didn't need when I didn't have to, and that's it.

Q. You've been playing a lot of tennis. Are you thinking of maybe rescheduling for the clay season?
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: I don't know. I will have more time now I guess to rest and prepare well for clay.

Q. I apologize for the timing, but since you're on the player council, your reaction to the news about Wayne Odesnik?
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: I don't know anything about it really.


(via Sony Ericsson Open, photo/AP Photo)

Miami: Novak Djokovic's 26. March Interview