FAMILY CIRCLE CUP

April 1, 1995

Magdalena Maleeva

MAGDALENA MALEEVA: Well, I guess it was pretty obvious that I was a bit nervous, so I just didn't know exactly what to do. I don't know her very well, we've never played, so I knew I had to be aggressive and I had to make her run, but I didn't feel so comfortable. I made some mistakes in some important points but in the end I did what I had to do.

MAGDALENA MALEEVA: Yeah, I had to go to the net and I never did it. I should have been more aggressive.

MAGDALENA MALEEVA: Well, this is exactly what happened, I was more aggressive and she couldn't handle the speed. I kind of -- you know, I kind of realized and gave up the set really and that's why I played better.

MAGDALENA MALEEVA: Yeah.

MAGDALENA MALEEVA: Yeah, this is what I had to do which I didn't do all the time.

MAGDALENA MALEEVA: Yes, exactly.

MAGDALENA MALEEVA: I have seen her play but we've never played each other.

MAGDALENA MALEEVA: Well, this was the difficult thing that I didn't know exactly what to expect, and ever since the match started I knew it was not going to be easy because she doesn't make any mistakes. If you make her run you'll win, but she doesn't give you free points and she's steady and she doesn't miss. She's a good player.

MAGDALENA MALEEVA: No, I won't be nervous tomorrow.

MAGDALENA MALEEVA: Because I have nothing to lose, because I'm playing -- I played very well against Chanda Rubin and I know I can play well. And well, I don't know, maybe I'll play bad, I have no idea. I just know that I'll try my best like I do every time and we'll see what happens.

MAGDALENA MALEEVA: We've played at least two times.

MAGDALENA MALEEVA: Yeah. I've never beaten her.

MAGDALENA MALEEVA: It's her heavy top spin on the clay, she has a -- she's extremely talented and she's probably one of the more talented players in the top 10 and she has this unbelievable hand. She makes you run, she makes you work hard and she's aggressive also, so she's a good player. She's No. 4 in the world.

MAGDALENA MALEEVA: Yeah. Well, I have to be patient and be aggressive and that's the tough thing to do because you don't know exactly when to be patient and you don't know exactly when to go for it --

MAGDALENA MALEEVA:-- and that's the art of tennis.

MAGDALENA MALEEVA: I didn't feel good, but it's one of those things you can't control, so whatever happens happens.

MAGDALENA MALEEVA: Yeah, sure, because -- well, you know, it's compliment for me because she has never ever given up a match like that and I never -- I've seen her injured before and she would always go out on the court and go and play and the fact that she didn't even try makes me feel like that she knew it was going to be a tough battle. So I thought I had a pretty good chance because I played well against Chanda and I was looking forward to it, but what can I do, it's one of those things I can't control. It's like playing Monica in '93 or whatever years it was and she got stabbed, I mean, what can I do.

MAGDALENA MALEEVA: I practiced a little bit.

MAGDALENA MALEEVA: Thirty minutes.

MAGDALENA MALEEVA: I haven't yet -- well, I've gotten a lot of phone calls; my sisters called, my mother called and my father called, and all these people because I haven't -- we'll probably go out tonight somewhere, but we'll see.

MAGDALENA MALEEVA: Actually, I talked to my mom and my dad yesterday, and since the hour difference is eight hours, they already wished me happy birthday because it was 12 o'clock midnight in Bulgaria, but I talked to them again before and after the match so that day they congratulated me Bulgarian time and American time.

MAGDALENA MALEEVA: Well, I talk to her every day -- well, not every day but almost every day and we discuss the matches and we talk about how I feel and how she feels and so yeah, I guess -- also last year in Zurich, you know, she has won this tournament in Zurich in '93 and '94 and she has -- she never won this tournament?

MAGDALENA MALEEVA: Did she beat Chris in the semis?

MAGDALENA MALEEVA: Yeah, so it's nice to repeat what they have done.

MAGDALENA MALEEVA: They are everything. They're counselors, coach, I can confess to them all my sins and they're just -- they're everything to me; they are my sisters in the very best sense of the word.

MAGDALENA MALEEVA: Well, the kind of person I am it's not hard for me to get my identity. I mean, if you talk to me you'll know I'm not Manuela and I'm not Katerina, but I'm very proud to be a part of this family and there was never a sibling rivalry with us. I was never happy if they lose. I would get upset if they lose rather than if I lose, and I'm just proud to be part of that family. And, you know, people sometimes they come up to me and they say are you Manuela? No. Are you Katerina? No. And they say oh, you're the youngest and they said that doesn't bug you? And I say no, I'm really proud people recognize us.

MAGDALENA MALEEVA: Well, my music is different, my playing tennis is different, my life-style is different and but we have also many similarities so... But everyone is different. I mean, they are very different from each other also; everyone's an individual so...

MAGDALENA MALEEVA: Thanks.

MAGDALENA MALEEVA: Clay?

MAGDALENA MALEEVA: The surface?

MAGDALENA MALEEVA: Yeah. Well, you know, I didn't play the Lipton, I didn't play Indian Wells, and this is the reason, I really wanted to concentrate on the clay because I don't think it's good for anyone, no matter how talented you are, to play one week hard courts and next week on clay. Obviously some people can do it, but I didn't want to do that so I practiced for weeks on clay because the game is very different and I'm still getting used to it.

MAGDALENA MALEEVA: I practiced -- well, after Chicago I was home for two weeks, I only partied then, but then I practiced really hard in Switzerland two weeks and two weeks in Saddle Brook which is very nice.

MAGDALENA MALEEVA: Well, the game is just so different, there is no comparison. You have to be 100 times more patient on the clay and use a lot more top spin, and the game is a lot more like strategy; you have some to talk about -- you really have to win the point by thinking, unless you're Steffi probably who only hits and she's just so good at this. But it's a very different game and a lot of patience here, a lot of running.

MAGDALENA MALEEVA: I don't know.

MAGDALENA MALEEVA: Well, I'm in the final tomorrow so I don't know.