COMPAQ GRAND SLAM CUP

September 30, 1999

Mary Pierce

WTA: Questions for Mary.

MARY PIERCE: Not really. I think I every match is different. That's how I look at it anyway. Every time I go to play somebody, I just take it as a different match.

MARY PIERCE: Definitely something that you learn from. You always want to learn something. Every day you want to try and improve. Yes, definitely I learned a lot from that match, and this match today, too, of course.

MARY PIERCE: I think I learned that after watching the tape that I need to improve on my second serve, just to stay aggressive. Really that's it. You know, just try to limit my unforced errors. Try to come into the net more.

MARY PIERCE: I think it's a very personal question. It's tough to ask me that. I just wish them the best. I'm very happy for them. You know, as long as they're happy, that's all that matters.

MARY PIERCE: The same advice that I would probably give anybody: just to enjoy every day and every moment that you have.

MARY PIERCE: Well, the only thing that I can really say on that is that I'm surprised and, yes, disappointed. I really think that we should be able to get a sponsor hopefully very soon because I think women's tennis is at the best it's ever been right now. It's exciting, has great depth, we have a lot of great personalities. You can look at the TV ratings. You know, they're just getting better and better. So I think we'll definitely be getting a sponsor very soon, we should. As far as what we should do to get about doing that, that's nothing for me to say. We have our business people; that's their job.

MARY PIERCE: That's scary. I don't know. Probably going to be younger, stronger, taller, hitting harder. Who knows?

MARY PIERCE: I don't know. It's hard to really say because with the new rules that we have, that would be almost impossible to do because they're limited in how many tournaments they can play, what level tournaments they can also play.

MARY PIERCE: Old Wilson racquet that they don't make anymore, unfortunately.

MARY PIERCE: Wilson Pro Staff.

MARY PIERCE: Uh-huh.

MARY PIERCE: They said no, then they said maybe. We'll see.

MARY PIERCE: Why?

MARY PIERCE: I think it's pretty obvious if you look at the Top 20 and the Top 10. Every girl who is playing now is playing great tennis. Every week, a different player could win the tournament. Even in the first rounds, we don't have easy matches anymore. Everybody is getting stronger and hitting the ball harder. I think for the fans, it's more exciting for them. For a player, for me, at least on my behalf, it's more challenging. It keeps you on your toes.

MARY PIERCE: I like both. I like clay. It's different. It's a lot of fun. You slide around. I like hard court, as long as it's not too fast.

MARY PIERCE: Filderstadt, Zurich, Moscow, Linz, Leipzig.

MARY PIERCE: That's a really tough question. I don't think I have one thing. I really couldn't put my finger on it. There's just so many things that I love about it. Probably just competing, I guess, if I had to really say. That would be the one thing.

MARY PIERCE: I really admire Chris Evert a lot. I watched a lot of her while I was growing up, playing tennis. She's always seemed very poised, very feminine. Her game was just amazing, how consistent she always was day in, day out, very accurate.