US OPEN

September 4, 1999

Monica Seles

WTA: Questions for Monica.

MONICA SELES: Yes.

MONICA SELES: I've never actually seen the old match. Everybody, whoever comes up to me, says it's one of the best matches ever played. It just will be fantastic that we get a chance again to play after so many years. But it's a totally -- it's a new stadium, it's a new point in our lives. Everything is just different. It will be a very good match.

MONICA SELES: It's hard to say. I mean, you can't put that much emphasis on one match. It's not going to make an A or B thing in our career. Whoever wins, it will be great, they're in the quarterfinals. There's still three more matches to be won. You know, I think it's just fantastic to see her come back, not just in tennis, but in life. She seems really happy. That's I think one of the most important things there.

MONICA SELES: She came out playing really well today. The balls were just flying by me today very fast. I got really lucky in that first set that I just broke her right back. It could have been a very different match. Every time I play her, it's close, a couple breaks here and there. She likes to play on fast courts, fast conditions, which were tonight. I'm really happy that I could win the match in two very tough sets.

MONICA SELES: I really don't, any of my matches. Not just that one, I really don't, no. I'm sure once my career will stop, if I want to, if I care to, I might look back at some of the great matches with Jennifer, Steffi, Martina, both Martinas, and Chrissy. At this point, no.

MONICA SELES: Yes, I saw her in Toronto. I was supposed to play her there. I saw her at the French.

MONICA SELES: I think it's pretty much the same. It's hard for anybody to change totally their game. I think her coach, Harold, has added a couple new things to her game. She's playing with a lot more confidence than I think I've seen her in a long time. I think she just seems really rededicated to her career. That makes a huge difference.

MONICA SELES: No. I think eight years' time, a lot of things change. If I would look at the tape, it would probably be today's match.

MONICA SELES: No, no.

MONICA SELES: Yes.

MONICA SELES: Definitely.

MONICA SELES: It's different now. You have four or five players that hit the ball hard or actually harder. It's very different. I think what it did, though, it brought women's tennis to a different level. At that point the young girls were watching because they realized, "We got to hit the ball hard." The game has been raised another level. I'm sure the girls who are watching us home and the top other five players in the world are going to hit it harder too. It's normal. It's getting to be a much more stronger game than it was 20 years ago or ten years ago.

MONICA SELES: I don't know. I think you can hit hard really if you have a one-hand or two-handed backhand. If I would have a young child starting to play tennis today, I wouldn't want them to do one-handed or two-handed. Just depends on the person.

MONICA SELES: I really don't think her career went out of control because she lost that match. She's won still plenty of matches in '92 and still I think was a Top 5 player. I don't think so. I don't think your life can spin out of control because of a tennis match. I think it was definitely an important tennis match because she would have been in the finals. She had a shot at winning her first Grand Slam title. From that point of view, definitely. It did give me a shot to win my first US Open title. Tomorrow's match, I wish it was the semis already. It would be nice.

MONICA SELES: Was it? I don't know. Might be. I don't believe in that stuff.

MONICA SELES: It's been a tough one for me to find people who share my same goals because I think it's important. I didn't get to be No. 1 on my own. You need a support system. You would have to have a tremendous ego to think you can do this on your own. I'm in the process to find people who share the same goals, who share the same dreams. Hopefully that will come together. I know on my part I have the commitment. Right this second and always in my career, I just worry about the next match.

MONICA SELES: Oh, definitely. I would not be searching all these things and worrying about all this stuff if I wouldn't. I mean, maybe ten years ago I needed to play for a lot of other reasons, too. Right now, I really don't have that pressure on me. I just purely love to play and really enjoy practicing. I mean, I don't enjoy the traveling one time zone to the other, playing six, seven weeks in a row. Like now I probably play ten weeks in a row. That part I don't. But every other part I do, thank goodness.

MONICA SELES: I don't know. Life is strange. So many things can happen. I hate to look into the future. As long as I love it, I will. Really when I started as a little girl playing tennis, I never imagined that I would be here and making the fantastic living, meeting great people, really having all this just because I love to play. As long as that passion is there, I will keep playing at some level. I don't know if it's a world class level. Just have to see.

MONICA SELES: Oh, yeah, definitely. The girls are much bigger and stronger. The serve has become much more of a weapon than probably five years ago. They're hitting the ball harder. It's just very different. Everybody is hitting the ball harder, which before you might have had three or four players hitting the ball harder or someone like Steffi just on one side hitting the ball harder. The girls have gotten taller and stronger. No question, you have to keep adjusting.

MONICA SELES: I think it's a different pressure when you start out in your career. There are all these expectations. You want to win a Grand Slam tournament, you know. Everything is new. It's just very different. You're in a different state of mind I think at that point, all of us when you start out in your career. I'm six or seven years into my career, somewhere there. I'm sure three years from now will be totally different, too.

MONICA SELES: Oh, yeah, definitely. I tell you, I would not be out here. If I could do other things that I love as much probably as tennis, not have to worry, have less pressure on me. It's not the greatest thing waking up every morning, feeling the pressure of win or lose, trying really to improve. But as long as you love to play tennis, when you wake up in the morning you're happy with what you're doing, I really don't think there's a better thing in the world. I just hope once I stop, I'll find that in my next challenge in my life.

MONICA SELES: I don't know. I definitely didn't play too many years full circuit. I started on full circuit when I was 16. Obviously I played two and a half years. Since I've come back, I've played on and off, with my dad and everything. I don't have that much wear and tear as maybe Steffi who played fully since she was 13. She has had a lot of injuries. It's hard. I talk to a few people like Bobby, track and field, they peak at 33. I don't know. I don't want to do that. As long as my body and my mind are fine, I'm happy what I'm doing, I'm just going to keep playing. If tomorrow morning I wake up, I don't want to play, then I definitely won't play. I would not want to put myself through that.

MONICA SELES: It's been fine, totally. I've been playing three weeks now, singles, doubles. I have no problems yet.

MONICA SELES: Yeah, definitely. Still I would like to be somewhere else than right now. No question there. That's why I'm trying to find a support team because I think that's important. You see the girls are doing that. Not just the Top 5 players, it's really been the Top 20 players that are doing it even now. It's a tremendous thing I've seen. When I did it more than other times in my career, you feel more confident. I think that translates into your game too.

MONICA SELES: I need one or the other. I don't have anything right now. You also need to make sure you find the right person because I think they can take you in the wrong direction also at the same time. For me, it's been a tough process because obviously my dad passed away at a critical point in my career. I relied on him in every sense. Now suddenly I have to be the one making those decisions. It's hard. You seen that with Hingis. It's been hard for one tournament. You have to imagine that for someone if you're never going to be able to go and ask that person again what I should do. If I made some mistakes, I'm sure I'm going to make some more. I'll just keep trying.

MONICA SELES: I wish it would work like that, like in a corporate world. I really wish it was like that. In the tennis world, it's not, unfortunately.

MONICA SELES: Oh, boy.

MONICA SELES: Yeah, definitely. I mean, it's a tough time right now because most coaches, trainers, are working with other athletes and everything. It's during a Grand Slam, I don't want to think about that. I'm sure as soon as I'm out of the tournament, whatever happens, then I have to think about it. Right now while you're in it, you really want to stay focused on the task ahead.

MONICA SELES: I did talk to Martina. I haven't talked to her lately, but I talked to her last December. She gave me some great insight, what were the turning points in her career and everything. She was not lucky, you can't say lucky finding the right people at the right time. She had it. Hopefully that luck will come my way, too.

MONICA SELES: With Billie. Anybody to get Billie, that's pretty huge. Doesn't get better than that in the tennis world.

MONICA SELES: If I would wake up from dreaming, yeah. That's not my reality, unfortunately, right now. Doesn't mean it won't change.

MONICA SELES: I used to train with him. Bobby is a very good friend of mine, same with Jackie. I did talk with him when I was out in St. Louis a couple months ago. He's just given me tremendous input and also support at the same time with a lot of other things, just about your mind, focus, everything. It's just terrific.

MONICA SELES: I know. A lot of times even other athletes, Gayle for sure also. No one imagined where Gayle's career would be. Also Jackie, to do what she has done in the sport that's unbelievable, I think much more demanding on your body and mind than tennis. To be the best is quite unbelievable for that many years.

MONICA SELES: Practice, practice. What else?

MONICA SELES: I have my coach Jimmy Arias. I'll work with him, get a rest. I don't think I play doubles tomorrow. I'll probably watch my doubles partner Mary Joe play Venus. That's pretty much it.

MONICA SELES: No. Jimmy can't because he's playing the seniors Tour.