WIMBLEDON

July 8, 2001

Venus Williams

MODERATOR: Who would like to start?

VENUS WILLIAMS: Am I trying to emulate Althea?

VENUS WILLIAMS: I can't say I'm trying to emulate her. Really, I was just trying to make my own success.

VENUS WILLIAMS: I think it was the fact that I was up 5-Love, and last year, you know, I won in a tough tiebreaker, so it was two different circumstances.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Oh, I think it means more to me.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Because I had to work a lot harder to win this one. In my first rounds, I was really not playing very well. I really just kind of had to force myself to play good tennis. So for me it was a real effort.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Maybe yes and no. Yes because I played a very good set, in important situations, which is super for me. I was really relaxed at that point - really just ready to take it all. You have different feelings that you go through when you're playing. At that point I was really ready to go.

VENUS WILLIAMS: You know, I think in the second set, we were on serve. It was just one break toward the end. Surely if you're going to get broken, it's better to get broken maybe in the beginning and not the end. And I didn't play as many good points as maybe I should have, and she played better points than me. But maybe it was just experience that came through, or maybe she was a little nervous in the third - I don't know. But I'm happy it went my way.

VENUS WILLIAMS: You know, I just didn't want her to be upset because she'll have her chance. She plays very well. She plays a lot of gutsy matches. If she just keeps playing the way she is, good things are bound to happen.

VENUS WILLIAMS: I'm the best player today (smiling). I really am happy about this whole two weeks because for me this is the first time where I've served very well every match that I've played. For me, that's a good breakthrough. I always served well at the important points - no double-faults or any of that stuff. So for me that's a good thing. Really just moving forward. Last year I don't think I worked as hard as maybe I should have after my wins. I was just tired. So when you're tired, there's not a lot of motivation to get better. But this year I'm going to take it a little differently, I'm going to work a little harder.

VENUS WILLIAMS: In my mind, I'm always the best. I can't see anybody better than me. If I walk out on the court, I think the next person is better, I've already lost. In my mind, sure, I'm best. On paper right now, I'm No. 2.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Well, I was really excited. You know, I love Wimbledon. It's great not to have to lose here. I haven't lost 14 matches in a row - plus the doubles, I guess. So for me that's really sweet. It was good because, sure, it would have been nice with the crowd, maybe nice for you writing to have a tough third set. But for me, it was nice just to kind of run through it. And that was sweet. This means just a lot more to me this year because I hadn't played as well in the other Grand Slams as I would have liked, especially with my French Open. And I really wanted it.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Last year in between Wimbledon and Stanford, two weeks from now, I didn't practice at all. I won that tournament.

VENUS WILLIAMS: No. And I won San Diego. I didn't practice that much for the US Open either - then I won two tournaments after that. At the Olympics, I didn't hit hardly at all. I'd get out there, I'd be practicing, I'd just be fooling around. Really, if you start fooling around, your game gets worse, you walk off the court. I was a major pin collector at the Olympics. I didn't do too much practicing. I didn't really practice. I had about eight wonderful days of practice before Wimbledon, that lasted me the whole year.

VENUS WILLIAMS: This year I'm going to practice more.

VENUS WILLIAMS: I think I can capitalise better, just really work on more things in my game - moving forward, taking the ball early - just some new strategy that I can add to the next year coming. I didn't really do that last year. A lot of things happened. I went to school. There wasn't a lot of time . A lot of sponsors, things to do. But I'm going to make time to practice.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Definitely I want to move forward because no one's going to give you a Grand Slam. If you take it, you've got to move forward, or at least be willing to move forward a little bit. Even if you're not going to the net, attack the short balls, something. That was my plan today. I didn't even want to think about it. If I see a short ball, I'm moving in. That's how I like to play.

VENUS WILLIAMS: I think it's going to be a great place for me years to come. I've really been serving well this past two weeks. Really, everyone I played couldn't return my serve. So for me that was a plus because I have very easy service games. If I get in a tight area, then all I have to do is serve it out. For me, that was a real plus. It's a real plus to your game to have that ability. Serving like this on the grass makes it even more difficult because the ball is coming so fast, and it stays low. I think that was really important these past two weeks.

VENUS WILLIAMS: It will be tough because, you know, I'll be older. Some people started when they were younger winning titles. My first title is at 20. If I could have started winning at 16, maybe the story would be different.

VENUS WILLIAMS: People have been telling me that for years - actually, ever since I was nine. Actually, I've been working on my movement because I notice that I'd really slowed down and I wasn't concentrating on really getting every ball. So this past two weeks - everything's happened in the past two weeks - really started trying to move a lot faster. That's frustrating for your opponents too. They can't get a ball past you. Once I put my mind to it, I got a lot better.

VENUS WILLIAMS: You know, I've had a lot of experiences like that with the crowd. Doesn't seem like that often that, you know, I'm the player that the crowd wants to win. For me, it's not as important because I want to win. Even if the crowd's on my side, I still have to win for me. I still have to hit the ball. They can't do it physically for me. Who knows, maybe there will be a day when they root for me.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Oh, for sure they wanted her to win. I guess it's always nice to see the unexpected happen. But for me it's not an issue. If they don't agree with a call, it's not an issue. I don't function this way, where I have to have approval.

VENUS WILLIAMS: I guess it fits into that theory.

VENUS WILLIAMS: It's on the top list now. Maybe in the past, it wasn't. Grand Slams definitely are No. 1. Then No. 2, for sure, is No. 1 (laughter). Oh, boy, like a Dr. Seuss book. Really, that's all. I have to make it a priority. I have to play more. Either that or I have to win every Grand Slam, which is not easy, so I'll play a little bit more.

VENUS WILLIAMS: No, I don't feel changed. I'm still a kid, and I don't want to grow up yet - but I have to in some things, but not everything. So it's a happy medium.

VENUS WILLIAMS: I don't know. I'm not going to say what I'm going to do. I like school, but then I miss the tournaments. I do. Because there's a lot of places that I like to go. For me, I judge a tournament whether I have good memories there. For me, I'd miss all the places where I had good memories. I'm going to miss it this year, but we'll see.

VENUS WILLIAMS: I don't know. I don't remember exactly. I was really ready to serve it up. At this point I was very confident in my serve. If I could return a little bit better, that's all that counted. By that point, I was just very relaxed, very loose, just really ready to compete. Maybe when you first get out there, you're a little bit nervous or a little tight. By the time you get to the third set, you've got to be loose. I just felt very loose.

VENUS WILLIAMS: It wasn't tough at all. I'm used to the rain. I expect it. If it happens, it happens. I still have to play.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Yeah. I don't recall playing that year.

VENUS WILLIAMS: I was here for a few hours. I went home, then I came back. Really, I was ready to play any time. But I think the delay helped me a lot, just to think things through, kind of make it more simple in my mind. Maybe if I played at 2:00 or whenever I was supposed to, maybe things would have went differently, I don't know. But by the time I got around to today, I was very calm. This time I did a lot of thinking before the final - maybe more than what I needed to. I think that helped me to stop thinking as much.

VENUS WILLIAMS: I think tennis is something I'm really good at. I like playing. It's a great job. Sometimes things get really complicated, especially if you're having a really bad time in your career. But right now, things are quite simple.

VENUS WILLIAMS: I like the upgrades, special privileges and things like that. But other than that, no. I'm just trying to be me.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Really, just every day, you know, going to the supermarket. If I want to get an ice cream, if I want to go to the health food store, if I want to go to the mall, or if I want to go to Blockbuster, just things like that. I just like to be solitary, just me and my little dog, we go everywhere.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Like after the Olympics, that was a really tough time. Everyone was thinking about the Olympics, I guess. But as far as when things get complicated, when you have tough losses or you're not playing very well, then tennis seems really complicated, just with the technical aspect maybe. But when you start to play well, it's not as hard.

VENUS WILLIAMS: I don't know. Maybe the finals will because it's different playing someone like maybe Capriati in the finals than playing someone who's there for the first time. I think that will stand out. Maybe it's more difficult.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Really, you know, she had had the win before, the one time that we had played. But that time I didn't play well, so... This time I had a better plan.

VENUS WILLIAMS: No, I don't like to be like everyone else. It annoys me. That's what I mean about fashion trends. Like I'll be doing something, and all of a sudden it's trendy, so I have to put it away. If I want to pull it back out, suddenly I'm out of style. I don't like that. But with tennis -- that was irrelevant (laughter). Really, I like to do things that make me happy. That doesn't mean I have to do everything the way maybe the next person does it. Everybody has their own way of doing things. For me, if I want to play, I'll play. If I don't, I won't. If I want to go to school or if I want to retire, for me, whatever is important for me at that point, not for what's conventional.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Ooh. I don't know. We'll see. I just have to keep playing well. I think I have a good combination because I return very well on the grass, in my opinion, especially maybe my semifinal, and I serve very well. I hit my groundstrokes well, of course. Plus I'm willing to move forward when I get to Wimbledon. At other tournaments, maybe not as much. But at Wimbledon, I will move forward. I think it's a good combination.

VENUS WILLIAMS: Yeah, I have to tell her.