WIMBLEDON

June 25, 2005

Maria Sharapova

THE MODERATOR: Good afternoon, everybody. Maria Sharapova.

MARIA SHARAPOVA: Yeah, a lot tougher I think. The score doesn't say much about the match. It was a lot tougher than it seemed. Even though I was up in the first set, thought that she was able, you know, to come up with some good shots and put me in difficult situations. But I was able to, uhm, serve well when I needed to, even though I wasn't serving quite well throughout the whole match. But even in the second set, she had the opportunity to come back into the match. She had four breakpoints at the end of the match. I was able to hit really good first serves. That was the key.

MARIA SHARAPOVA: I didn't say that.

MARIA SHARAPOVA: No.

MARIA SHARAPOVA: I think so.

MARIA SHARAPOVA: No. Today they were definitely slower just because of the conditions. But, uhm, the air is heavier. The balls don't fly as fast through the air. The previous days it was really hot, so the pace of the shots we're going through the air a lot faster. Today the situation's different. But just have to adjust.

MARIA SHARAPOVA: Well, I think last year I was really excited to be in the second week of a Grand Slam, and this year, I expect myself to be in the second week of a Grand Slam. So, of course, it's different. But I still feel really happy to be in the second week of a Grand Slam, no doubt about that.

MARIA SHARAPOVA: For sure. I enjoyed having those tough situations where your opponent puts you in tough situations, especially in the early rounds. If you don't have those positions, you know, in later rounds you get to that point and, you know, you might be a little bit struck by it. Like I said, it was definitely a tough match. Every single point, I needed to find a way to win it. You know, she can be a very dangerous opponent, especially on grass. She has a great grass court game, big serve, has a great chip, comes into the net a lot. Of course, it's going to be difficult.

MARIA SHARAPOVA: Those things definitely don't help me to become No. 1. What helps me to become No. 1 is the hard work I put in on the practice courts. Not the stamps, that's for sure.

MARIA SHARAPOVA: Yeah, I thought I could have served better at the beginning of the games. I was able to serve well when I needed to. You know, it's better to start off serving well and getting an advantage rather than waiting for the whole game and being down a breakpoint to start serving well. A lot of that had to do with the conditions. Maybe I thought I needed to go for a little bit more because, you know, the serve didn't have as much penetration as the other days. You know, it's all right. Still got through it without serving great.

MARIA SHARAPOVA: Yeah, pretty satisfied.

MARIA SHARAPOVA: Of course. It's never easy. I'm just excited to be a defending champion rather than, you know, losing first round last year and coming here.

MARIA SHARAPOVA: I mean, atmosphere's always great for me. I always feel excited to play in front of a Wimbledon crowd. But I try to block a lot of that out when I step out onto the court.

MARIA SHARAPOVA: Right.

MARIA SHARAPOVA: Every experience is a different challenge and every year is a different challenge. Obviously, last year I didn't have -- not a lot of people expected me to win the title, and I did. That was exciting. But it's also really exciting coming back as a defending champion. It's a great feeling to have, something that you'll always cherish forever. But, you know, it's a different challenge, of course. Every tournament's going to be a different challenge, different opponent. But that's why I play tennis, because of these challenges. I enjoy difficult, different challenges, yeah.

MARIA SHARAPOVA: Just my next round.

MARIA SHARAPOVA: No. I mean, I can look at the score board and see the score, but it doesn't really...

MARIA SHARAPOVA: The men?

MARIA SHARAPOVA: No, not a lot. I like when there are going to be exciting matches. But not a lot, no.

MARIA SHARAPOVA: Uhm, well, you know, I pretty much am in control of the things I focus on. I feel like I've balanced that really well in the past. You know, I'm No. 2 in the world. And I don't think so far anything has distracted me. It's hard to say. I don't really want to change anything right now because I feel really satisfied, you know, with how hard and how much I work on the court, and then what I do off the court. I'm still enjoying it. Like I said, if I wouldn't be enjoying anything that I did off the court, I really won be doing it.

MARIA SHARAPOVA: I think Dechy would probably be the favorite to win that match, but you never know. I played Dechy maybe once before. Actually, I played her on grass a few years ago in Birmingham. But a lot of things have changed since then: her game, my game. It's going to be a new experience. I know a little bit about how she plays, but it's not really about how your opponent plays; it's about your game.

MARIA SHARAPOVA: You know, always the next rounds are going to be tougher and tougher.

MARIA SHARAPOVA: Rest, read. Nothing special.