WIMBLEDON

June 23, 2005

Jane O'Donoghue

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

JANE O'DONOGHUE: Well, I thought off the ground, ground stroke-wise, I played pretty good and played some good points, but I just needed a bit more composure on my serve. These girls make you serve that bit -- try and make you, you know, force your serve because you have to get your percentages high against them or else, you know, they're gonna kill you.

JANE O'DONOGHUE: That sums it up right there, really. It's a shame because I've got a good serve. But, unfortunately, today it was just one of those days where I was kind of fighting it a bit. But off the ground, I felt I could really match her, and this girl is, what, Top 20 in the world. Probably 12 months ago I would not have even been able to match her at all off the ground. So I've got to take a lot of confidence from that and, you know, take it on to the challenger tour now next week and build from it.

JANE O'DONOGHUE: Yeah, I was. I mean, like I say, off the ground, I can live with these girls now, which is a big, you know, boost for my confidence. And I know I can serve well also. Just got to get a bit, you know -- get those percentages up, and then it could have been a different story really because she was pretty edgy out there.

JANE O'DONOGHUE: Yeah, exactly. I was pretty unlucky in the first game. Even 4-2 as well I had a few slight chances. But, you know, she was -- she looked a bit edgy out there. But then as soon as you give her a bit, you know -- few free points, then she really does step it up and look a class act.

JANE O'DONOGHUE: Oh, definitely. Yeah, yeah, definitely. I've not had the greatest of years. The last two months I started to really build the confidence again. You got to remember, this girl's, what, 220 places above me. I mean, I don't play these girls every week, and for me to step on the court against her, you know, it is a big deal. And like next week I'll go and play a tournament in Felixville in the middle of nowhere and play girls 500 in the world, which play completely different. No disrespect to them, but you got to be realistic and take the positive out of the match and think, "Wait a minute, 12 months ago, I would not even -- 2 months ago I would not have matched these girls off the ground." And I've improved a lot in the last couple of months. Just got to keep working hard with my coach, and hopefully next year I'll go further.

JANE O'DONOGHUE: This is by far the best tournament in the world. You know, I'm very lucky to have the opportunity to play it, and so I'll be working very hard again, you know, keep doing what I'm doing, because this is why you play the game. To be able to play on a big court like that here at Wimbledon is fantastic. And I've got to take the positive now. Yeah, I can live with these girls off the ground. If I probably would have got my percentage up a bit higher, I might have been talking to you where it might have been 6-4, 6-4 - you don't know - or even taking a set off her. Then you just have no idea what's gonna happen then.

JANE O'DONOGHUE: I am, yeah. Hopefully -- I've only seen a couple of games this season, but I'd like to get to a few more next season.

JANE O'DONOGHUE: No.

JANE O'DONOGHUE: Have they? Well, that's a good start to the campaign (smiling). Is that home or away?

JANE O'DONOGHUE: Great (smiling). Right, I have to try and get tickets for that then.

JANE O'DONOGHUE: Yeah, it's great for the town. I mean, you know, they're a good rugby team, struggling a bit at the minute. Football is doing great now. If only I could raise the, you know, profile of tennis in Wiggin, it would be great. But, you know, the more exposure you get in the papers and that, it will encourage girls to play the game. I mean, I never played tennis at school because I was a girl. You know what I mean? It was just one of those things, I couldn't play for my form because I was a girl. I didn't go to a private school, I went to just a state school. And that's the attitude in this country, it's very difficult to get, you know, girls playing sport. Because I remember in PE lessons, girls just would give a letter to the teacher, "I don't want to do it today," just because they weren't interested in sport. It's kind of not cool to be sporty. The more people you can get high profile, like Paula Radcliffe, et cetera, then hopefully more people will play the game. And in the next 10 years, hopefully you'll be talking to more British girls who are doing well in tennis.

JANE O'DONOGHUE: Oh, I think I was a bit of a pain in the ass really for my teachers because I was so competitive. I always wanted to win everything. Even in rounders I had to -- you know, I would tell people where to stand because I just encouraged them to, you know, win. I mean, okay, you can enjoy doing sports and everything, but the end of the day, I'm a very competitive person whether it's playing tennis or playing pool in a pub or whatever. You know what I mean? I want to win. Maybe, I don't know, you're probably born with that.

JANE O'DONOGHUE: Yeah -- well, not really. I mean, we didn't really have lots of facilities at our school. But actually in the town now we've got a great tennis center, and that's where I played and, you know, good coaches there. It's just, hopefully, you know, people will want to play the game after seeing me play hopefully on TV today. And, like I say, the more people you get playing, the better. Because it is a good sport. You can play at any age. It's not all about winning, but obviously it's my job, I want to win, I have to make a living so...

JANE O'DONOGHUE: I'd say, well, it depends now. I'm at the same ranking, so it will be interesting speaking to me in 12 months' time because I've got a good platform now. Be about, I don't know, 210, 220, and I have no points to defend for the next 10 months. So this is my chance now to take the experience and all the, you know, the confidence I've got from the last couple of days. It's only two days ago I beat a girl 40 in the world, which, I mean, everybody I saw when the draw came out, they said to me, "Who you playing?" I said, "Groenefeld." They went, "Oooph," as if you've got no chance. I went out there and proved that I can beat girls 40 in the world, which is great. It's just unfortunate that today I came up against a very good player. You just got to realize that, you know, Rome wasn't built in a day.

JANE O'DONOGHUE: Yeah, yeah, definitely. I think now that I'm working with Phil Fowler, I've gotten the strengths back in my game, I'm a lot fitter, everybody's saying I'm looking in good shape. I felt really strong on the court today. But just have to, you know, be a bit more disciplined, get the percentages up in certain parts of my game when I'm under pressure, and it could be a different story.