AUSTRALIAN OPEN

January 22, 2005

Lindsay Davenport

THE MODERATOR: First question.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: No, not really. I was expecting a tough match in the third round, knew she had done well to get there. No, I was ready for it.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: Yeah, I mean, she definitely -- from what I was told, she was a hard-hitter, had a pretty good hard serve. You know, that's what I was expecting and that's what she did. I mean, I think she hits some great shots. She made some errors that probably some inexperience played a role in that. But she's so young and obviously has a big game and has many, many years to improve on that. You know, like I said, I was fully expecting a tough opponent and was able to play well enough to get through it.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: I mean, that's tough to say. I hate comparing players. I mean, she obviously has big groundstrokes and a big serve, and she's only 15. So she has a very big future. We have a lot of players that play that way. But I think she'll, you know, strive to make a name for herself.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: You do (smiling)?

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: Thank you.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: It is. The turn of events in the last six months took no one more by shock than myself. I was fully ready to see the twilight of my career. But, you know, something definitely changed last summer and I started playing at a very high level, and it started becoming really exciting again and very interesting. And I felt like I really had a chance to do some great things. I'm excited I'm back here. I was definitely not sure last year. And now that I'm here, I plan to, you know, do my best to try and win another Grand Slam. Have made plans to be committed throughout the whole year. We'll see what happens.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: Well, not necessarily on this date. But the last few months, yes. I mean, I wouldn't have thought, you know, midyear last year that I would be here, no less the No. 1 seed, be playing good tennis again. In that way, it is a surprise.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: I think it's interesting. I'll be following it like everybody else. I think she's picked probably a good tournament to start off in, I think it's a Tier IV tournament where she'll be playing opponents that she's got a great chance against. I was always really saddened and disappointed when she stopped so young and so early. I've always had a good rivalry and a good friendship with her. I'd like nothing more than to see her back, playing at the top and being competitive out here.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: I think when you do this job and you're out here, age doesn't matter. We have obviously Martina Navratilova at I believe 47, 48, somewhere around there, and Nicole at 15. But you can't think of it in terms of age. We're not obviously in the juniors or in high school where a couple years makes a difference. If you choose to play out here, this is what you've chosen. For me it's more about the game and what kind of game the person brings and how good they are. That's more what I concentrate on than how old they are.