U.S. OPEN

September 2, 1994

Ginger Helgeson

GINGER HELGESON: It feels great. I've -- it's been tough, you know, playing her so many times, and playing well at periods of times, but never really converting, and capitalizing on my opportunities and just finally closing out the match. I played her really well in San Diego three weeks ago. I played great, and I felt that if her passing shots at that point were just a percent off, I would have won that match. So I knew going into this match that I was going to play the same way. It just so happened I came out trying to play that way and a lot of balls were flying and they weren't going in, and I stayed calm and kept plugging away and just tried to stay even with her in the second set and hold my serve and always be up, and then I knew I could -- once I got to the third set, I knew I could play some good tennis.

GINGER HELGESON: Yeah, I do, in the sense of, you know, when you lose to somebody so many times, it's really hard to get over that hurdle to just keep believing every time you walk out on the court that you can do it. It just may take five, six times.

GINGER HELGESON: No.

GINGER HELGESON: Well, if the San Diego paper covers it, maybe they will be -- hey, that's not a jab, just if they know about it.

GINGER HELGESON: The only thing is just that when I have played her before, she goes through periods of time where she looks like she's not interested or just doesn't care, kind of lacks, so I was prepared for that. In fact, she's done it every single match at some point in our -- for a couple games here and there. So, I saw her go like this once or twice -- (RIGHT HAND BACK AND UP OVER SHOULDER) -- but I didn't think she was going to quit or had a major problem.

GINGER HELGESON: Well, I just think that, like I said before, I played her a really tough match in San Diego, and that gave me more belief that I was very, very close to beating her, because I was coming in, controlling every single point, and the only thing that was happening in that match is I was making the first volley, but it was sitting up, because -- because she dips the ball so low. You've either got to drop-volley it or really get your feet in position and force it deep. So, I was setting up the first ball and she passed me on the second so I felt I was more prepared for that this time, to volley a little bit shorter and have her come up, and just to be close a lot more.

GINGER HELGESON: No, I won -- I knew I was very close to beating her with that game plan.

GINGER HELGESON: In San Diego she passed cross court 90 percent of the time. At Wimbledon, in the final, I watched her against Martina and she just had that backhand dip down and she loves that shot. And so, I was, you know, like I said, prepared to close the net off a lot more. She lobbed me, I don't know, three times, so I didn't have to guard--

GINGER HELGESON: I believe in myself, I knew I could.

GINGER HELGESON: It wasn't so hard in the sense that I didn't get down 3-0 in the second set. You know, I think that would have been really hard, but I just stayed even with her and held my serve through the second set, and there were a couple, you know, long deuce games where it could have gone the other way. But I mentally stayed strong and made her earn every point and tried to attack as much as I could.

GINGER HELGESON: Yeah, it did because last year, that was my first time on Stadium -- yeah, Stadium Court here and being that the -- the magnitude of that match was huge. I had never experienced something like that before. So, actually, today it seemed almost smaller because when I won two days ago, I was prepared to play tonight, you know, again.

GINGER HELGESON: Do I know how many wins I have?

GINGER HELGESON: I've beaten Mary Joe on grass, Eastbourne, Sukova, Zvereva, my one set over Martina in Team Tennis. Those are a few. Right now I can't think of any more.

GINGER HELGESON: To describe it, it's very, very peaceful and beautiful, and it's 25 miles east of San Diego. It takes me about 25 to 30 minutes to get to practice and it's in the mountains, little bit, up two thousand feet, and there's a lot of land out there and the houses aren't on top of each other and you wake up to birds.

GINGER HELGESON: Ha!

GINGER HELGESON: Yes, I'm not used to living in a city with a lot of commotion , like New York, or neighbors right next to you. I just -- I grew up with a little bit of land and so it does remind me of Minnesota. It is a small town and people are just so genuine and nice.

GINGER HELGESON: Four.

GINGER HELGESON: No, I have eight classes left which is a full year and, so, I would like to finish there whenever the time presents itself.

GINGER HELGESON: How many people live in Alpine?

GINGER HELGESON: Ten to 11,000.

GINGER HELGESON: Yes.

GINGER HELGESON: Right. Yes, I try to stay away from that.

GINGER HELGESON: It did have. You know, I mean, it was -- yeah, because, you know, she could have gone up 4-3, then be serving, that was a critical point, and -- but as to how much it affected her, you'd have to ask her.

GINGER HELGESON: I really didn't feel I was serving very well at all in the first set, and the beginning of the second I was struggling. I've been serving well and I really didn't know why. I was just focusing on that round because I knew if I started serving better, I'd get shorter balls and a lot quicker freer points right off the bat. So I felt that I figured it out and in the third set turned it on.

GINGER HELGESON: That it was deuce.

GINGER HELGESON: Obviously, she didn't concentrate very well on it and I was just ready -- I was happy to be back at deuce and not broken.

GINGER HELGESON: I don't know where they got that.

GINGER HELGESON: I took a pottery class at Pepperdine and had a great time and my mom is into art.

GINGER HELGESON: No, no. I don't know why that's in there.

GINGER HELGESON: I'm not that earthy.

GINGER HELGESON: Yeah.

GINGER HELGESON: Probably both. He helped me a lot over the last three years, he's just a terrific guy and he's a very -- has a calming effect on me when he coaches me. I tend to panic at times and get uptight and he just stays even keeled and, you know, keeps me on the path that I need to be on. And he's really helped me get a lot of variety in my game and working with him has raised my belief.

GINGER HELGESON: H-U-G-H, B-R-E-A-M. Yes.

GINGER HELGESON: Well, I think the belief that I took from San Diego was a big factor in this match because I felt I moved a lot closer to believing that I could beat her from that match, and also, my first two rounds here I felt I was playing very well. So, I knew that I was capable of doing it in whatever form it came in. Whether it was two sets or three sets, I was prepared to take it in whatever form it did come.

GINGER HELGESON: In 23 days, yes.

GINGER HELGESON: Uh-hum.

GINGER HELGESON: Tod Nielson (phonetic).

GINGER HELGESON: I'm not thinking that far, I just now found out that I play She-Ting Wang or Gigi and I'll come out and play as well as I can in that match. And, you know, for me, just staying in this is really special in these tournaments. It's hard to stay calm and relaxed. And if I have a day off, we don't even come out here, we practice in Central Park and that helps a lot. So, I'm not going to be looking towards semis or anything because I'm not there yet. So...

GINGER HELGESON: Both, both.