U.S. OPEN

September 2, 1993

Arantxa Sanchez Vicario

ARANTXA SANCHEZ VICARIO: I think I have been playing really well. I feel I am in very good shape and I have a good preparation before coming here to the U.S. Open and I have very good results. I have some chances to win a couple of tournaments. I feel like I am playing pretty good. I have a lot of confidence. I feel good on this surface, and that is the way I feel.

ARANTXA SANCHEZ VICARIO: Yeah, I mean, I think that I start a little bit slow and she hit pretty good shots and I was not into the match. Takes me a little bit -- takes me a little while to come into the match, but after 2-Love I start playing very well, moving the ball better and wait until the opportunities and I feel good today.

ARANTXA SANCHEZ VICARIO: Well, I think that when you have kind of game and you know, and you always playing that way, you know, all your life, it is hard to try to change and do something else. But I am trying to put that on my game. I know that I am pretty quick and I am doing pretty good also in doubles, and I am trying to do that, but it is going to take a while until I get completely, you know, 100% to do that. I do it couple of times and I feel pretty good to do that, and we will take little bit of a time, but definitely I want to put that on my game, yeah, to try to win at least on grass, or here.

ARANTXA SANCHEZ VICARIO: Well, I think that since the beginning of the year I played really well. I start pretty good in Australia, so after that I win a couple of tournaments and I did really well and I played a lot of matches so that helps me a lot. I change coach in the middle of the season like in Wimbledon because the other coach has to go back to Brazil and now it is -- it will take me awhile until I get used to the new coach, but the guy I am working with me now, is Sven, he is helping me a lot. I am happy with him. I am still playing really well, winning, and I handle it pretty good, and I think he wants to teach me more come to the net more, like he said, and we are working on that, so that is especially feeling good and having confidence and it didn't affect me too much, the change of coach.

ARANTXA SANCHEZ VICARIO: Well, I think that on the side where I am right now, No. 3 in the world, you need a person to give you confidence to playing well and mentally you feel always great, especially you play the big tournaments and the big finals, so that is the most important thing to have a person you know, on your side, can help you all the time and you feel relaxed and you know, when the time you are going to play, you feel good. I mean, he is not going to change anything you know, to me, because I have you know, already my game, but probably he will try to help me, you know, the most he can and see if we can move up in the rankings. So that is the coach that I am looking for. Like, you say, it was hard to have to split with Carlos, but now, it is gone, and I have another person, so life continues and I feel good. So that is the most important thing.

ARANTXA SANCHEZ VICARIO: It is a Sven Groeveld. He was hitting partner with for Seles last year.

ARANTXA SANCHEZ VICARIO: Since right after Wimbledon.

ARANTXA SANCHEZ VICARIO: Definitely. Especially that you know, I change coaches, but I think that it was hard to do that and it was not -- it is not any problem, but I think that that happens in a -- happens a lot. You have to continue. You cannot be thinking about that anymore, but definitely it was hard point in my career.

ARANTXA SANCHEZ VICARIO: No. We are close family and I mean I do not have a lot of opportunities to stay with my brothers; most of the time it is here at the Grand Slams, but we talk a little bit. Of course, they help me when I was little, and coming to the tennis family I always have the support and the good direction to go and that is very important for me and sometimes I play with them also. Definitely they helped me. They travel together and we have different coaches, but sometimes it is nice if I have some problems I can go to them they listen and give me their advice.

ARANTXA SANCHEZ VICARIO: Of course. I think it is nice to come back to this Center Court, especially after last year, you know, try to win the title and you know, I lost it, but it is a great court. There is a lot of people moving and talking but it is normal here, so I get used to it since last year. But definitely it was nice to come back to the center court and remember a good feeling.

ARANTXA SANCHEZ VICARIO: I know. I think that they will talk a little bit more now that I did the past and I think it will takes time; probably will talk more about me. Maybe I don't have the same attention that I am supposed to have, but I think that with the time, it will change, I think, I hope. But definitely they talk more about other players than they do me. I know I am doing everything right, so it is the press that has to talk to me.

ARANTXA SANCHEZ VICARIO: Well, I think that first I have to play you know, more matches to get to the final to play against Graf. I am a person who goes, you know, thinking match by match. But definitely, you know, beating Graf, No. 1 in the world two times this year, with great wins, and I know I always have close matches, and I always play really well against her. I know what I have to do. We know each other really well. We have played a lot of times each other. But I would like to try give this year to beat her in the final here.

ARANTXA SANCHEZ VICARIO: Maybe -- I don't know. It is hard to answer it, but maybe they like other players better than me. I don't know, I mean, I am always asking the same question. To me, I don't know. So, maybe if somebody knows they will answer it a little bit better. I don't know.

ARANTXA SANCHEZ VICARIO: Well, I think when you are No. 3 in the world it is nice when everybody talks about you. You work hard to be there and they don't talk much about that, with your results, but of course, with you know, since the last year, everything changed more, you know, I get more recognized. In Spain, of course, I am very popular. In the rest of the world anywhere I am going, the people recognize me and that makes me feel much better. Maybe, you know, I would be one day like Seles or Sabatini, or Graf; they are always talking more about them. But I mean it is not an obsession for me. I think that it will take time and probably one day I will be there too