|
|||
|
|||
|
 |
|
|
US OPENAugust 31, 1997Mary PierceFlushing Meadows, New York Q. Mary, pretty well a perfect first set, then it sort of started to go wrong. What happened? MARY PIERCE: I think in the beginning I played really well. You know, I did exactly what I needed to do. I felt Monica wasn't being too aggressive. It's what I expected, you know. When I played her the last two times I was really surprised, I was expecting more pace on her balls, her being more aggressive. This time I knew what to expect. Everything went well. She started playing more aggressive in the second set, even towards the end of the first set she started playing more aggressive, hit the ball harder, took the ball earlier. You know, I just have -- just have to give her a lot of credit. Since that point, she didn't let up. You know, I didn't raise my game to another level that I needed to. I think also I played the first set really well, I gave a lot in that first set. Second set my intensity dropped a little bit and hers went up. I think that's what made the difference. Then in the third set, you know, it was really close. Not much I can say. I'm still pretty upset at this point. It was just a really close match, even though the scores don't say so. You know, every point was tough. Just a few shots here and there, the unforced errors that I didn't make in the first set that I made in the third. You know, things like that. She had some great serves, great shots on the line. That's why she's No. 2 in the world. I think she hit some great shots. I think, you know, I didn't make the shots that I was making in the beginning. Q. So how big a deal was the overrule by the chair on that one line shot in the third set, your first service game of that set? MARY PIERCE: Which one? Q. Her first service game of that set. You were at breakpoint, I think, would have had the advantage if the chair had not overruled. MARY PIERCE: I don't remember. Q. Not a big deal. MARY PIERCE: I don't remember. There were a lot of bad calls. Some overruled, some she didn't. You know, it's not her fault. It's the lines people. You can't really rely on things like that, but they do make a difference in the match. Q. Monica early in the summer had a real problem closing out matches, no matter how far ahead she was. Do you sense that she is sort of rounding back into her old mental form? Do you see she's getting back to that level? MARY PIERCE: Yes and no. I mean, when I won the first set, I really felt like -- you should never say you have the match won. The example is today. I really felt that her intensity -- not her intensity, just like her will. Her serves were like ten miles per hour slower. I hit a dropshot, she didn't run for it. There were a few times I felt, "Stay on top of her, don't let her back in." I made a few mistakes, she got back in, then she got going into the match. Once she is on a roll, she doesn't let up. Q. You played Monica as far back as 1992, how does her game now compare with what it was before the stabbing? MARY PIERCE: I would say basically her serve has improved. But overall, you know, she's not as aggressive as she was before. I think, you know, she tends to just let the ball drop a little bit. I mean, she still hits amazing shots, but it's not like before. Q. What do you come away from this game with in terms of what you feel you may have to work on now or what you didn't do that you may have wanted to do this time around? MARY PIERCE: That's a tough question for me to answer right now. You know, I'm going to go back and probably watch the match. You know, there's a lot that I can learn from it. You learn more from your losses than your wins. But, you know, right now I'm still pretty upset, so I'll think about it later. Q. Mary, in five of the times you lost to her, each one has been so incredibly close. Has there been some sort of common thing that you think back through all those matches? MARY PIERCE: I guess basically it just came down to she won the important points, the ones that counted, just a few shots here and there basically. Q. Anything shot-wise or stroke-wise, you think? MARY PIERCE: No. Q. Mary, what kind of effect did Seles' breaking you early in the third set have on you emotionally or mentally, when she went up 3-1? MARY PIERCE: Well, I mean, it's not always good to be down 3-1, 4-1 in the third set. It's not really over. I kept telling myself not to worry what the score was; just to fight for the point, to stay in there till the end, anything can happen. Q. Mary, players speak about winning the important points a lot. You obviously have won a lot of matches in your career and have won those important points. But when you're playing a top or an elite player, what's the difference for you mentally when you're going for a shot down the line or when you're being a bit more defensive? Do you feel different at all or is she just hitting a better ball when she has to? MARY PIERCE: What's your question basically? Q. My question is: Why do you win the important points in your earlier round matches, but when you're playing a higher seed, why is it more difficult? MARY PIERCE: It's more difficult. It's natural. You're playing against a better player, a higher level. That's why we're at the top. There's only a little difference from all us girls at the top. The ones who win more of the points, important points, are one, two, three. That's what makes the difference. "Why" is the question. I don't have the answer. Q. Mary, all the attention that's been given here to the teenagers, you're still only 22, do you feel like you've got something to prove now that you're still here, still around, still got a lot of good tennis left in you? MARY PIERCE: No. I mean, I never feel like I have anything to prove to anybody or to myself. I think I'm very fortunate to do what I'm doing. I love to do what I do. Have a lot of fun, train hard, look forward to playing my matches, tournaments, traveling. I just go out there and give it the best that I have, you know, try to win every time. Q. Nevertheless, you've had a game which probably is worthy of a semifinal. Must be disappointing to go out this quickly when some of these other girls are still around. MARY PIERCE: Yeah, it's pretty tough. I mean, it's probably one of the toughest matches, I guess I'm in third round, that there is. But that's just the way the draw was. You know, unfortunately that's where I was seeded at this tournament. Just how it happens. End of FastScripts…. |
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
About ASAP Sports •
FastScripts Archive •
Recent Interviews •
Captioning •
Upcoming Events •
Contact Us
FastScripts | Events Covered | Our Clients | Other Services | ASAP in the News | Site Map | Job Opportunities | Links |
|
ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297
|