Once ranked around top 50 in the world Michael Berrer, comes out as straightforward person. Currently ranked 105 in the world Berrer is looking to gain points and more than that a lot of confidence to get him back into the top 50.Q: Why did you choose to play at Tashkent Challenger this week?
Berrer: One of the reasons I entered the event was to make up points. I dropped quite a lot of points from Moscow, where I had entered the semifinals last year.
Q: After being on the ATP tour and playing at the grand slams, isn’t playing Challengers like coming down a bit?
Berrer: Yes, It’s a Catch 22 situation really, playing at the bigger events I did not win many matches frankly and losing matches surely harms confidence of players. I feel by playing in challengers is not disgrace; a few wins and close matches surely help to regain confidence back into the game.
Q: How was your experience on the ATP tour tennis wise?
Berrer: I played many of the top players in the world like Federer, Schuettler, Roddick at the Grand Slams. Playing on tour is tough, tensions are high, and there is tremendous pressure at events. That’s professional tennis; those who survive and conquer it are winners.
Q: It’s like getting back to basics, what do you expect for yourself in the new season?
Berrer: My aim to play some very good tennis, and get back into the groove and gain confidence and make up points till the end of the year , there a few more events . Then it is to get back to my rankings and then to improve on it steadily.
Q: So do you think the Tashkent challenger will help you in your effort?
Berrer: Surely, I really had not expected this kind of high ranked players to be playing here, and it’s a tough tournament, which is even better for me. I playing well and am feeling comfortable.
Q: This week you have seen a lot of Asian players and you are also played against Lu who is the top Asian Player, Your thoughts on the difference in the game compared to Europeans?
Berrer: The Asians are coming up very strongly and are very tough players, most of them have flat strokes, because they are used to playing on hard courts. Lu is a different player as he has the European style of play.
Q: Is there any difference in the organizational aspect between Asian and European events of this stature?
Berrer: Anytime, hospitality in Asian countries is better than in Europe, Mostly the tournaments are well organized here .
Q: Your comments on the Tashkent Challenger?
Berrer: This is my first time in Tashkent, before coming here there were apprehensions about the event, the food, language. But some of the senior players and other German player who have played in Uzbekistan before have said a lot of good things about how events are organized here.
I’m happy that I came here. I would like to compliment the organizers of this event for putting an excellent week for the players.
(Via Sunder Iyer on behalf of the media team at Tashkent Challenger)
