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June 04, 2007

Quotes from the French Open Interview Room - Week One

Typewriter

 

Discussing her experience in kindergarten playing the game “duck, duck, goose”

SERENA WILLIAMS: Well, basically all the kids from the class sit in a circle, and then, you know, you pick one kid, and they go around, they touch the kid's head, they go around in a circle with all the kids, and they say, "Duck, duck, duck, duck, duck." And then whoever they say goose to, the kid has to get up and chase the other kid around. The other kid has to get back around and sit down before the kid touches him. And I always wanted to be the goose because I was really fast. So, you know, the kids kept choosing their friends. I didn't have many friends. I never got chosen unless it was about time for

recess to be over with. So, man, I need to talk to a shrink about this. I'm going too far into this. Never mind. I was never the goose (laughing).

Discussing how her view on life has changed since 2003…
JUSTINE HENIN: Well, a lot of things have changed. A lot of things have improved. And I grew up a lot, and I see my career and my life differently. And the thing is that what I keep from that is all the emotions my career brings to me, and that's very important to me, all the emotions I can get on the tennis court. I don't want to be part of the history of the game. It's not my main goal. It's just, you know, the joy that I can get on the tennis court, giving 200 percent, making a lot of sacrifices, and then win tournaments and offer that to people I love so much. And that's why I keep playing tennis. And it's the same in my life. If I can give to people I love so much, it's -- I'm very happy and I understood a lot of things in the last few years and probably most importantly in the last few months.

Describing her current relationship with her family…
JUSTINE HENIN: …I confirmed a few -- I think two weeks ago that I have contacts again with my family and that includes my father and my brothers and my little sister. But I just want to keep it private. It's a lot of joy. I'm very happy about that. But that's it.

Discussing her reactions after losing to Lucie Safarova...

AMELIE MAURESMO: I'm not surprised. You know, at the end of the day, if you work, you win matches; you build up your confidence and you play better and better. Now I have worked over a certain number of weeks with ups and downs which were related to my physical condition, and that's all I can say. And unfortunately, it's not a surprise.

Reacting to being told that Roger Federer says he thinks you're the favorite for the --
SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA: No. Roger said that he likes to watch me play. He didn't say I'm a favorite, okay? I know that.

Describing her feelings regarding Federer’s compliment about her game…
SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA: Well, the Russian press told me so, and I thought like, "No, it was a joke."  So today I wanted to check it myself. And I went to Internet last night and I read this. And it's if I would have to choose a compliment of anybody of, like, best thing to hear about myself, definitely it's the best I ever heard.  And it's, like, the best you can hear. Like Roger, is legend. He's almost -- it's my dream. It's never going to come true, but Roger played unbelievable tennis. I mean, it's unbelievable to hear this, to hear him say about my tennis.  So it's a little bit compliment for me. He's my, like, hero, you know. So it's, like, the best. There's no more words the say about that.

Discussing why she smile so much on the court during her matches…
JELENA JANKOVIC: … I don't really know what it is. It's just I am smiling all the time. I think it's good. I am the person who likes to laugh a lot. Even before the match we were, I think, my group, my team, I think you could hear us. We are the only ones who are so loud. And the others, they always laughing, always making jokes. Then when you see the other players so quiet in the corner, you don't hear them. Then you see the clowns over there.  No, but it's just how we are. It's my personality. It's on the court, and I really enjoy the game. Why not, when it's a good point, why not to smile? There's nothing wrong with that.

Serena Williams talking about playing her idol, Monica Seles….
SERENA WILLIAMS: …I know the feeling because I loved Monica Seles, so whenever I got a chance to play her, I was just still really excited. And, you know, winning against her was like the ultimate goal. Every time was just so cool.

Explaining why she sometimes practices with two guys at one time…
SERENA WILLIAMS: Well, one hits with Venus, and one hit with me. So if they're not hitting with ‑‑ one's not hitting with Venus, I like to hit with both. I traditionally like to hit a lot of two‑against‑ones, because it's like they never miss that way. If one can't get the ball, he's already there to kind of get it back, so... I hate it sometimes and it's good.


Describing what it was like to have a long break from the Tour to rest her shoulder….
MARIA SHARAPOVA: It's incredible. I don't know if it was good for me or not, because I want more of that sometimes. You know, like I said in my first interview, I don't think you actually realize what your career has given you or brought you until you actually get to spend the time there and see it for yourself. I was able to live a normal life alone by myself for a few weeks where, you know, I got to go to the grocery store, and I had to cook my own breakfast and my lunch. It was just so unusual for me because when I'm a week here or week there at home. Either my mom comes and I see her, and she'll do all of that great stuff, and she'll be the one going to Target and buying toilet paper. I think I seriously ran out and I had to go to a friend's house next door to get some, which is very unusual, a new experience for me. I know I'm 20 years old, but in a way, I am so mature because of what my career has brought me, but in ways I've missed out on the normal things of life which I'm really not used to. And it was wonderful, I love it.

Talking about going to the grocery store… and her cooking skills…
MARIA SHARAPOVA: Absolutely, the first time I was lost, absolutely lost. Now I've got it under control. I know where the vegetables are, where my favorite cheese is, I've got it all going.

MARIA SHARAPOVA: The cooking is awful (laughing). It's completely awful. I always call my friends over to help me, yeah. I'm not very patient, and I can't wait for things to boil and to fry and make sure it's not red and all of that. But I usually go to my friends house and help them cook, which is just cutting up a vegetable, yeah.

Sharapova talking about hitting partner, Michael Joyce’s, mother’s death and attending her funeral…

MARIA SHARAPOVA: …It was pretty sad. It just makes you realize that, you know, I'm sure his mom would have loved getting a cortisone shot instead of chemotherapy. It just makes you realize that there are so many worse things in life. And that's why being home, being around his family also helped me a lot. I'm very close to them, and I've known his family for a very long time, since I was 10 or 11 years old…. when she was going through the chemotherapy and when she was really sick, he would practice with me in the morning and then go straight to see her and be with her. Then I'd see her once in a while. But it's sad, you know, because she gets the perspective of the people around her she's never going to see again. So it was a very ‑‑ it was a very different experience because there is only so much you can say to make someone feel better. Tons of people can say I'm sorry, but Michael and his family are the only ones that can really feel what it's about, because it's their mother.

Discussing playing (and losing) PlayStation games against Carlos Moya…
RAFAEL NADAL: Yes, he won yesterday…. I think we are very, very competitive with our Playstations together. Moya and Nalbandian played on a team, and they beat us. So we decided to turn off the play station, and they said, "Well, that's unfair."… I'm going to apply sanctions because he broke my remote control, and I'm just left with my Playstation. It's always very expensive, and I'm not the one breaking it.

Talking about how her time off affected her outlook…

MARIA SHARAPOVA: Tough in one way. Great in another, because I got to spend some time at home. I've, you know, gotten to appreciate what my life has brought me, has given me. I don't think in my career, obviously, I don't think I've had a more serious injury. But on the other hand, I don't think I've had that much time to actually appreciate the things that life has brought me, you know, the friends around me, you know, my house, you know, where I live. You know, I've just gotten to take it all in. Whereas before, it's always been a week here. After I had a shot in my shoulder, I had two weeks where I couldn't touch a ball. So it was my friend's birthday, other side of town. I went over there, you know, just did things that I usually don't get to do, and that was great.

Maria Sharapova talking about her shoulder injury and why she played the French Open this year

MARIA SHARAPOVA: Because I have a lot of respect for this tournament. I want to play it. Like I've said from the beginning of the year when people asked me, you know, what was gonna be my next goal, I said the French is probably going to be the most challenging event that I'm going to play in my career. And I play tennis because I love challenges. I love going out here and I love competing. And as long as the doctors give me an okay, as long as I can, you know, play through the little aches and pains that I get from time on, then I'm okay and I'm willing to do it. I mean, you know, I take the good and the bad. You know, I have absolutely nothing to prove about my career. And, you know, this is just another challenge that I want to have with myself, you know. Because I know inside of me that I can do it. I know it's going to be the toughest thing in my career to win this tournament, but I'm willing to do it.

Discussing recent positive changes in his life…
MARCOS BAGHDATIS: I went to Cyprus and I live in Cyprus now, and I feel good. I have a new coach. So it's good. I'm working well, and I work more diligently, I would say. I would say that I'm quite peaceful… I have some friends there. And I can lead a life of a guy who is 22 years of age. I'm 22 years of age. I need to have friends and I want to live and I couldn't do that elsewhere. So I can tell you that my motivation flagged a little bit, but now I'm more motivated. And I've decided to go to Cyprus to live with my brother, with my family. My family lives there, so when you feel good out of the court, you feel also better on the court.

Andy Roddick discussing how to plan his schedule in the future to play better on clay courts

ANDY RODDICK: ….if you play more, then that means you're ‑‑ you know, if you play a front‑loaded schedule on the hard courts in America, what? Do I not play as much there? You can't play every week. You're body is not going to handle it. So it's kind of, you know, do you over‑play on your worst surface or do you try to play a lot on your best surface. So that's one where it's ‑‑ if I pick either way and it doesn't work, it's going to be the wrong decision. So it's tough.

Discussing what has changed since Courier, Agassi and Chang had success at Roland Garros…
ANDY RODDICK: I think, you know, I think a lot of it comes with the strings now. I mean, guys can hit as hard as they can they're still getting 10 feet of net clearance. It's just jumping. I think it's a difference. I don't know if back then you could hit a serve 135 and have someone completely top out on a ball, swing as hard as they can, and have it drop in. At least in the replays I see, I haven't noticed that. And I think that has a lot to do with how the game's changed on the surface.

Describing how he reacts to disappointing losses such as his first round loss…

ANDY RODDICK: I'm able to turn my mind pretty quick normally, because I just look forward to playing those tournaments so much, even Queens. You know, you can either sit back here and cry and hold hands and, you know, all that fun stuff, or you look forward. You know, looking forward is normally the better option.

Talking about her feelings about the state of her game after her first round win…

VENUS WILLIAMS: I feel good. I think the most important thing is that I'm on tour, and as long as I'm on tour, I feel like really good things can happen to me. So it's just important for me to stay in the tournaments and be healthy.

Describing her practice sessions with Sister, Serena Williams…
VENUS WILLIAMS: We're definitely really competitive, and there's no one to practice with like Serena Williams. I think she feels the same as me, that she gets some really good practice when she hits with me. So I guess that's an advantage for us. But at the same time, we both need to work on different things, so sometimes we need to have a separate practice, too.

Commenting on the low number of American players in the French Open draw…
SERENA WILLIAMS: I think 10 is a lot maybe, but maybe for the size of our country, maybe it's not. I believe it's because, you know, I think the main factor is that there's hardly any tournaments in the United States. You have Miami and Indian Wells and a few L.A. tournaments. And back in the day when my dad was inspired, who put me in tennis was because he had saw someone playing tennis and it was in the United States. And we had tournaments in D.C., I mean, which is a huge city, Atlanta. I mean there was tournaments everywhere, Houston. I remember Virginia Slims had just tournaments in Chicago and there were so many different cities there just aren't any tournaments any more. There's only a handful of tournaments in the United States. So I think that is why there's only ten players in the draw.

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