At around the same time two years ago, Marcos Baghdatis was the hottest property in tennis. He took the tennis world by storm by making the Australian Open final before losing to Roger Federer. But the Cypriot couldn't quite maintain the same level of intensity thereafter to slip down the rankings.

Ranked a career-high No 8 in the world in 2005, Baghdatis, only 22 now, has slipped to No 16. Despite adding weapons to his armoury, Baghdatis fell in the opening round of the Chennai Open — a tune-up for the season's first Grand Slam — last week. In a chat with the Deccan Herald, Baghdatis spoke on a variety of topics. Excerpts:

You had a bit of melt down after the 2006 Australian Open, what went wrong?

I don't know. I was new and every tournament I played was the first time I played in. I think I put a lot of pressure on myself after the Australian Open. It was my first big success. I knew I had to do something and more. I wanted to win every match after that. I felt I was expected to. Then when I lost, I began to lose confidence. The more I started losing, the worse it became. I lost a little bit of confidence with each loss.

How do you handle pressure now?

I'm more experienced and I can accept defeat now. I worked a lot physically and am a lot stronger and tougher mentally. I guess it is just a matter of wanting things.  

And how do you handle losses now?

Every time you lose it's for a different reason. Here in Chennai it was the first match of the year, I wasn't getting much rhythm. I think he (Robin Haase) played very good and he had nothing to lose. I lose a lot of matches, but the most important thing is to win the big ones. The most important ones are the Grand Slams and the Masters Series events. It's important to get more consistent, game-wise and results-wise. That takes time, sometimes you take a year or two years, sometimes you get there in six months. It's important though not to carry your losses with you. It's best to forget it and get on with it. That's where I use my girlfriend and my coaches, I just talk it out. Then come back fresh and feel good in the mind.

When you started out, you were the only player from your country on the Tour, were those days lonely?

It wasn't easy, but I had a good team around me, my coach, sometimes my brother was travelling with me. I had a small team around me that made me feel good. Then I made friends on the Tour, there were partners and people I got along with. Slowly it got better. Nothing in life is easy. Life's tough.

When you play, do you want to entertain the fans as much as you want to win?

The most important thing is to win. If in trying to win I entertain then that's good. Entertaining comes naturally to me. I don't try or think about it, that's the way I am.

You seem to enjoy sharing your wins...

I like to share my victories and my special moments with my country and my family. We are a big family. I left home very early, when I was 14, and whatever I learnt or achieved, I used to keep it to myself because I was on my own. That's why now I want to give, I want to share everything, especially with my family, if not for them and the sacrifices that they made, I wouldn't be here.

How was it playing Andre Agassi in his farewell US Open in 2006?

There were lot of emotions in that match, especially the first two sets I was feeling so bad on court. There were 23,000 people there, all rooting for him. I felt like I was playing against all of them. It was tough out there. I felt very, very small. I felt like an ant. There were a lot of nerves. Then I sat down and told myself to take it easy, to take it slowly. I worked my way into the match and made it two sets all. There were lot of emotions on the court that day and as the match wore on I started cramping. I just couldn't handle the pressure. I learnt a lot from that, it was a great experience.

How big is tennis in Cyprus?

Now tennis is the number two sport in Cyprus after soccer. Lots of young children are playing tennis and that's very good for the sport. I don't get to see very much of it because I am out travelling, but I hear about it a lot, people tell me about it. Also during Davis Cup I get to see it, there's a lot of support, and tickets are always sold out. It is nice to people interested in the sport now.

Which is your favourite city and favourite surface?

I like Melbourne for its atmosphere. My favourite surface is grass, it suits my personality. Even though I started my tennis on clay, that's the surface I need to improve on the most.

Is there any one thing you would like to change about yourself?

Yeah, I would like to be number one in the world.