FED CUP - BELGIUM VS. USA

April 24, 2005

Carl Maes

CAPTAIN MAES: I mean, you can never be pleased when you lose a match. On the other hand, I don't think I should be too unhappy with the result. I think the way my team played is more or less as I expected it. I think we could have won in every match, maybe one or two more games. I don't think it would have changed anything more to the tie clearly. I think there were no surprises: no negative surprises, no positive surprises. It was more or less how I expected it and as I had planned it. Clearly disappointed. You don't like to lose like that. On the other hand, I don't think we can expect much more than this. This is the difference in level that we've seen, unfortunately. We don't have the depth in Belgium the way other Grand Slam nations have it. We're very fortunate to have two top players. But behind there, in the subtop players, it's very difficult for us as a Federation to keep helping them when they're not really making it to break through to the top. In that respect, normal result.

CAPTAIN MAES: Yeah, absolutely. I haven't been involved in Belgian tennis for quite a while after I quit with Kim. In that respect, it was a very useful week. I do think that spending this week with them and following up on the next two months with the girls when they clearly play a more important tie, I do see some positive things to work on. I think in that respect you can say it has been a very positive week for me, but not towards the tie as such, but towards the future. I do see some clear things we can work on. I think in a similar situation we will perform better in the future.

CAPTAIN MAES: You're asking me a prediction?

CAPTAIN MAES: Is it going to be in Russia and on clay?

CAPTAIN MAES: That's going to be a tough one. I mean, the court surface I think is for me the tricky bit. Clay for both Lindsay and Venus who have played, and even for Serena, it's probably not the preferable surface. Kuznetsova practices on clay most of the time in Spain. Myskina has won the French Open. I think it's going to be a tricky one. I think on hard court I would put my money on the US. On clay court, I think it's going to be tricky. I hope that the US wins. It's always nice to lose against the eventual winner of the tournament.