Interview with Ivan Ljubicic: "That's a tough one. Greatest match I ever played. It's really, really a tough question. I don't know. It's difficult to pick one match."

Q. I was looking back at some of your records. I couldn't believe that it's 13 years since you retired. Are there times that you miss it, the playing aspect?

IVAN LJUBICIC: Definitely in the beginning. The first four, five years, there were moments where I felt like I wanted to compete. Of course, when we talk about missing parts, it's always the competition. It's never the training, it's never the traveling, it's never the ugly stuff. Let's put it this way. It's always more the competition.

I played couple, for fun, club matches, like team competitions back in Monaco for the Monte Carlo Country Club just to have a little bit more fun, also, in doubles. Because for singles you need actually to be fit.

But honestly, with coaching that I did since 2013, you do get that adrenaline rush, so it's not the same, but it's close enough. For me, that was how I fulfilled that hole that maybe I had in me in terms of missing the competition.

All in all, to come back directly to the question, honestly I didn't miss it much. Also probably because I stopped when I wanted and the way I wanted. I was not pushed out of the game with injuries or anything like it. That's probably also one of the reasons why maybe I didn't miss so much.

Q. That was a crucial aspect, then. You went out on your own terms, not on the terms of something else.

IVAN LJUBICIC: Yeah. I mean, I think that's the most important part and the biggest part, I felt. My body was starting to show signs of usage that was not reparable. I still today have cartilage issues in my ankles, but it was nothing major. It's just that you eventually start adapting your practices, adapting the way you play.

I didn't feel like I was ready for that mentally. My game was not where I wanted it to be. I mean, I was a top 5 player in the world. When you drop down to whatever, 15, 20, 25, then it becomes less fun and definitely the level of my tennis was not where I would consider that I enjoyed playing and being able. It was not so much about winning, but I remember, in the end, it was more about feeling like I could beat the best guys, even if I was not winning most of the matches. But the biggest part of my career, I always felt like if I have a great day, I can win, and by the end of my career, I didn't feel that.

That was kind of the situation and the moment where I felt like, okay, why not go out on my own terms. I didn't know at the time what I was going to be doing, but I did feel that I have a lot left in me still in terms of other stuff. Obviously, I wasn't wrong. I was also excited about the life after.

Q. What would you declare as, let's say, your greatest year, 2005 or 2006, if you look back? 2005 you reached two Masters finals. 2006 you made your career high ranking of 3. If you had to choose, if you're looking back, what would you say?

IVAN LJUBICIC: I mean, it's hard to pick between the two, because probably by numbers it was '06, but '05 we won the Davis Cup, which was big. It was by the end of 2005, and then 2006 I felt like I belonged to top of the game. 2005 was breakthrough, so not the entire season was great. 2006, if we have to say about one season, it's probably 2006 where I was winning titles, I was playing big finals, I was definitely trying to finish in the top 3.

Unfortunately I got sick by the end of the year, so the two biggest tournaments indoors, which was Madrid back then was indoors, I lost to Andy Murray at the beginning, I was sick, and I couldn't play the week after. And Bercy I didn't play. So those were the weeks where I made most of my points. I was really, really aiming to finish top 3 the season, but unfortunately I dropped, I think I dropped to 5.

But yeah, I mean, to answer your question, yes, it's probably 2006 if we look at the season as a whole.

Q. You mentioned Davis Cup. I was there when you and the team won the Davis Cup. Do you reflect back on that, and would you say that was the greatest single moment of your career?

IVAN LJUBICIC: It's difficult to say that. There are a few other moments where I felt extremely happy and proud. It's definitely one of them. Now, talking about timing, that's 20 years, and it's crazy.

The first big moment was, I mean, the first career title is always special moment. That is 2001 in Lyon, and then in 2004 was the first big, big moment, which was the Olympic medal in Athens. In 2005, that title was first big title, first big thing that we actually won. Yes, you win the medal, but bronze, what I mean, you're happy and proud, but it's not, how to say, it's not the final result you really want.

So '05 Davis Cup is the biggest thing, I guess the biggest title I have, even though I won the Indian Wells Masters 1000 (BNP Paribas Open), but you cannot compare the two. It's probably the biggest thing I ever won. It probably not probably, definitely is, it's hard to say, is the biggest moment, because honestly, at the end of 2005, I was extremely tired, so it was difficult for me to say that I was really enjoying the moment, mostly because I was extremely tired.

I do remember we, going back from Bratislava to Zagreb, and then we had this, this is what Croatia does, to world champions or huge sports results, there is always the welcoming at the main square in Zagreb, so we arrived, and it's not possible to know how many people, but they say between 60,000 and 80,000 people waiting for us, which was incredible. I remember the disbelief that this is actually really happening.

Then actually the crash after that ceremony that I just went 10 days sleeping, literally. It was incredible season while at the moment the Davis Cup, as I said, was the biggest thing I ever won.

Q. Greatest match you ever played in singles?

IVAN LJUBICIC: Oh, that's a tough one. Greatest match I ever played. It's really, really tough question.

But I'm going to tell you what are the things that come to my mind, not necessarily one, but, those two, talking about Davis Cup, those two matches in USA, first round beating Agassi and Roddick in LA were definitely memorable. Beating Rafa in semis in Indian Wells, if we talk about maybe the importance of the match, it's up there.

I don't know. It's difficult to pick one match. It's already difficult to talk about the result itself, but then if we go down to one single match, it's tough.

Even Kafelnikov, in the beginning of my career, to beat him in Monte Carlo 6 2, 6 1, was a breakthrough moment, '99. It was still the moment where we had a bonus point, so that made that particular victory even more important.

So, yeah, there are flashes, as you know, I beat all the top guys, but I cannot say that maybe that Rafa in Indian Wells was feeling a bit more special than others. But, yeah, I mean, we talk about 800 plus matches. It's tough to pick one.

Q. What about the doubles? If I had to choose something for you, I would think you and Mario Ancic's win over the Bryans in Davis Cup.

IVAN LJUBICIC: Well, again, that's the same weekend we talked about. That weekend was incredible. I beat Bryans few times with various partners. I think also with Ivo Karlovic I beat them once. But that's the Davis Cup. That's something different again in LA, Davis Cup.

Also, the bronze medal match against Bhupathi/Paes, 16-14, I believe, in the third set. Back then we didn't have a tiebreak. I didn't have many doubles memorable moments, but Davis Cup with Goran (Ivanisevic), we came back from two sets to love three times. We had some happy matches in doubles.

Doubles for me was all about Davis Cup and the Olympic Games. On tour, I mean, doubles for me was not the priority. I played few times. I never really, you know, went after it fully.

But, yeah, I mean, that match that you just mentioned, of course it belongs right up there to the top victories, even though it was not in singles. In terms of importance and, I don't know, surprise maybe. I mean, not for us honestly as much, because Mario and I felt like we really could beat everybody, but maybe because of the occasion, it was a little bit more special.

Q. You guys kill me. I just think it's so funny that you can remember scores from 20 years ago. But I want to get on to the coaching side of it now and the arrangement that happened with Roger, and it lasted until his retirement. Were you surprised in one sense that Roger came to you and asked you? It reminded me in one sense a little bit of the new Murray/Djokovic arrangement and how surprised Andy was when Novak asked him to work with him. What about you and Roger?

IVAN LJUBICIC: I was very surprised but not because I didn't think that I could do it or I didn't expect it. It's because nobody knew that he was stopping with Stefan Edberg. Everybody thought it's just he did the three years with Stefan, and there was absolutely no rumors whatsoever that they would not continue.

When he actually asked me, I was shocked at first, mostly because I didn't know that he was actually looking. Then obviously the second wave was, oh, you really think I can help you?

So then, of course, when things settled and he explained his thought process and how he got to the idea, I mean, it made sense. Luckily, for both of us, he was right.

But I really didn't know he was looking for a coach. Different from Novak, I guess, because Novak. it was quite obvious, I guess, he was looking for something or it wouldn't be as big of a surprise, because he was without a coach for a little while.

Andy maybe was surprised because he was not thinking of coaching as such. But I was definitely into coaching and I stopped with Milos Raonic two months before that, so I was not actively looking for a job. But it would not be a surprise even if somebody else would have asked me, which actually never happened.

The timing was great for me. So, yeah, it was definitely a shock. But as I said, you know, not because I was not thinking that I can do it or that I was not in the radar, but because I really had no idea he was looking for a coach.

END OF PART ONE