"He has a solid chance"

28 January, 2010 | 13:01

Fresh from his maiden Grand Slam semi-final, Marin Cilic has been reflecting on the experience, and most notably the chances of the man who beat him. 

"I think he has a pretty good chance," said Cilic of Andy. "He's playing well, hitting the ball good. And I think he has a solid chance to make it"

"He's adapting on each kind of game pretty good," he added. "He can read the game easy. He can serve well. He's a very good overall player and not easy to play, especially on the hard courts."

The Croat was solid himself, no more so than in a first set where he broke twice, albeit with some occasional help from the net cord.

"I think I played some great points," said Cilic. "I was standing on the court really good. I was playing some unbelievable points."

But those unbelievable points didn't last. The obvious turning point came in the fifth game of the second set as Andy managed the unbelievable himself.

"When he broke me in the second set for 3‑2 - he passed me when I lobbed him," said Cilic mournfully." I mean, his physical ability's really on top of the game."

That, he conceded, was the turning point: "I think he got a little bit of the momentum going and wasn't easy after to get back into it."

Cilic came into the match having played far more tennis, including two back-to-back five set matches. He admitted that was a factor in the defeat, but not the main reason for it.

"I think he deserved to win," finished Cilic. "Any player who comes to the semis has its own way. And today I wouldn't say that I was a hundred percent, but I gave my best, and that's most important that I can say."