PILOT PEN TENNIS

August 26, 2000

Monica Seles

Q. Your attempting to get back in the match. You hit what looks like a great winner down in the corner. All of a sudden she comes out of nowhere and fires a winner past you. I mean, what is going through your mind at that point?

MONICA SELES: She just played an amazing shot there. Reminds me when I played Mary at the French, Mary hit a similar shot like that. It is a fantastic point, obviously, as another player you are, wow, what a great shot, but then you just go back and try to refocus.

MONICA SELES: I think about the same as San Diego. Everyone says she is playing better. Obviously her serve is very strong and physically she gets back a lot of balls so that is very a tough combination; puts a lot of pressure on your own serve.

MONICA SELES: I just think my last matches were really not so good, really for the semis yesterday and today for the Finals. But it -- I mean, you just try to improve upon that and the next few days for the Open and try to play a little bit better than I did the last two days because against Nathalie I got back, but against Venus she is not going to let you get back into the match like that.

MONICA SELES: Yeah.

MONICA SELES: Well, I just -- I don't know. One problem is I am not feeling as confident. I haven't practiced as much as I am used to so maybe not as sure of my shots. I am making some more mistakes and unforced errors. But I don't know myself too. I have to talk to my coach and then think about it a little bit.

MONICA SELES: I think it was good to play so many matches, obviously, every match was really different and then playing against Venus she is probably playing the best tennis on the Tour right now. It was good to see where my game is. Try to take away a few things from here and just get ready for the Open here.

MONICA SELES: I think she was mixing it up definitely more today. I think she would go sometimes for the power and sometimes she'd take less power, hit the ball with less power, so. . She is mixing it up more.

MONICA SELES: No, I was frustrated with my serve; yesterday, really it started and today I think sometimes you say well, I am just going to serve this. I am not going to overthink and maybe sometimes you serve better.

MONICA SELES: I would say it is the same. She is playing the same way. She won this tournament last year. I think, one thing she is much more confident since winning Wimbledon.

MONICA SELES: Probably the same. Literally same score. Everything was the same.

MONICA SELES: You can't make as many unforced errors and you have to hold your serves because to break her on a consistent basis it is very difficult. She is 6' 2", 115 serves, that is pretty tough. But I can't give her that many breaks of serve like I have done in today's match.

MONICA SELES: Right now I think just play more tournaments pretty much.

MONICA SELES: No, just more tournaments. I think she will be No. 1 -- our Tour is you have to play 18 tournaments, they divide it, so you get penalized --

MONICA SELES: If you look at since Wimbledon she is, but consistency all year-round, it is Martina.

MONICA SELES: Depending if she played like she has been the last two months, yeah, definitely. I mean, the points add up quickly if you start winning all these tournaments.

MONICA SELES: Obviously I mean, especially this place is special to me because I came back here in 1995 for the Special Olympics, so I always stay at a special place in terms of that. Otherwise I just got to know Connecticut pretty well. I stayed in Hartford for about a week and then New Haven, I like it here. So hopefully I will be back next year for both.