NOVEMBER 28 - Q&A
When did you get to Portland?
I got in Monday…flew in from North Carolina.
Your first Davis Cup tie was the semifinals in Sweden – does this compare so far?
Obviously there is a big difference, we are not in a foreign country, everyone speaks English. I think the food is better in Portland – some people may disagree but I’m kind of an old fashion southern boy. The weather is similar though, mild and rainy. I’m just taking it all in! My clothes bag was lost on the flight over so I ended up going to dinner and the Trailblazers game in sweatpants.
The guys made fun of me a little for that, they were all in nice clothes. But they tend to pick on my clothes anyway. Being from the south, I guess I dress a little preppy and the team always notices.
What's the atmosphere like in Portland?
We haven’t seen too many tennis fans yet, the stadium is pretty empty when we practice, but there is lots of great advertising around and you can tell the city is really excited.
Who have you been hitting with?
On Tuesday, Donald [Young] and I practiced with the Bryans [Mike and Bob] and I’ll probably get a hit in with James [Blake] or Andy [Roddick] today. It’s a little different from Sweden where Sam [Querrey] and I were the only practice partners. Now we have the whole crew here with Mardy [Fish] and Robby [Ginepri], it’s great!
The Bryans mentioned that they were looking for revenge after you pulled a prank on them in Sweden and left their room in pretty bad shape. Do we even want to know how messy your room is?
It was a disaster! We’ll leave it at that! I’m not going to get them back for this one. It’s 5 [against] 1 and they have access to my room so I’m done.
Has the team had any big pep talks yet?
So far there have not been any big pep talks that I know of but everyone is so excited. I mean Andy, James, and the Bryans have wanted this forever. Obviously they are extremely focused but at the same time goofing around a little to stay relaxed.
Has there been any talk about the Russian lineup?
We really are not sure what the Russians plan to do. Davydenko doesn’t have a great record against James and Andy, but we are not sure what to expect. The rumor is that Safin is going to come and watch. I know our guys are just preparing to go out there and play whomever.
Was Davis Cup something you followed at all in college?
Absolutely! I definitely followed it, especially when the US was still alive in the draw. It’s been really special being a practice partner this year.