PILOT PEN TENNIS

August 22, 2003

Lindsay Davenport

THE MODERATOR: Questions for Lindsay.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: No, that was hot. I mean, I don't remember too many times where I've actually sweat like that and had problems even holding on. But, no, I mean, I was trying to stay concentrated to get it over with and just do what I needed to do to get the match over with.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: It was. I felt like I served well. You know, sometimes in this heat, it's tough to keep balls in, they fly a little bit. But fortunately I was able to hold serve every time, but the one time, and really feel comfortable in that regard.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: You know, sometimes it's just comfortability, you like to hit a few balls before you serve. I receive a lot of times. You know, I can do it either way. But it's always nice to get that first break in the first game, get off to a good start.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: No (smiling). I mean, she gets it in and it's a lot of side spin. The toss goes way out there. She does a lot of other things really well. Sometimes even that serve is tricky to play. Very rarely do we get serves these days in the high 50s or low 60s.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: No, not today. You know, I think she was making a lot of errors when she set up. A lot of her balls were going long. I don't know if that was the heat or just the errors she was making. When I played her in April, she was just on fire. We would have great baseline rallies and she would hit a lot of winners. Today she just seemed a little bit off in that regard. I was able to keep some balls deep and get on top of some points. But I thought got a lot of points off errors, as well.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: Yeah, I mean, it wasn't as big of an issue for me. She was on the other side of the draw. I was never really going to meet her till the finals. I heard she was iffy kind of the whole way through. I do think it's a shame for the fans. I mean, Serena and Venus have been the ones dominating the Slams the last few years. You know, it's always exciting, especially for the New York crowd, to have at least one of them there. Now both of them are gone. I think that opens up the door really wide for a lot of other players. I think, you know, the Belgians are probably still the favorites, but I think you've got to count on the Americans. We're excited, we want to do well, Jennifer, myself. You know, without them, I mean, it's definitely a lot more wide open.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: No, I wouldn't have said that this morning. No, it's great to have a lot of success here. It would be nice to actually go on and win the tournament one time (smiling). But it's great to be able to play well here right before the US Open every year. You know, I've always enjoyed playing here. I've always said that. I continue to say that. I like the court out there. It gives me a lot of confidence - win or lose tomorrow - that I'm still doing things right in my game and I'm on the right track.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: A little bit. I mean, we always expect tough matches. A couple times this year I've been kind of surprised in the earlier rounds with how some of the girls have played. You know, I don't know if it's my play or they just play bad when they play me, I don't know. No, it seems like I've had three matches, three relatively comfortable matches. I mean, a couple close sets here and there, but I felt really kind of in control the whole -- every set I've played so far.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: I feel like a lot of my game revolves around my serve. You know, when I'm serving well, it allows me to be a little bit freer and a little bit looser on my groundstrokes, because I have confidence I can still pull out points with a big serve. No, I do feel confident. I feel like I'm playing well. I feel like I'm in the right frame of mind. I'm really excited for this week and the next two weeks. A lot of times that has a lot to do with how I play.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: You know, I've never thought of it in those terms. I was top American for a few years before they came. I think more than anything, they've been unbelievable for tennis. I mean, they're so good, they're so athletic. I've never thought of it like that. I mean, besides the Williams, there are Justine and Kim - very, very good players, obviously. American terms, yeah, I guess I'd be the top-ranked American. But as far as the other players are concerned, I think we have a lot of depth in the rankings between three and six, three and eight, I think everyone is pretty close, and has a pretty legitimate shot now to win the US Open.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: I've played them both so many times - won a lot, lost some. I really have no preference. I've not thought about it one bit. I think they're going to have a really great match. I think both of them are good players. I remember watching them play last year at the US Open in a really tight tree-set match. They are totally contrasting styles of play. Mauresmo hits a lot of topspin, comes to net a little bit more. Jennifer hits the ball a little bit flatter, runs down a lot of balls, fights really hard. I couldn't really call that match right now if you made me. I have no idea. I think they're pretty evenly matched, and it's just going to depend who plays better.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: Yeah, I mean, I think a lot of people have seen it coming for a few months. I think that the way he has gone about his retirement is the right way to do it. He wasn't sure last year at the US Open so he took his time. He's been, you know, probably one of the greatest male players to ever have played, and at the same time, he's always been slightly overshadowed like Andre and some of the other players, which is pretty unique. What I admire the most about him is how he was able to win the US Open last year. It seemed for two years he was just struggling and struggling. Everyone had pretty much written him off, and then he comes through. To end his whole career, which was remarkable, in that kind of form, was just amazing.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: Story book-wise, it would have been great if he had the trophy and said, "I'm done." But he didn't want to make that mistake. I think a lot of times athletes make a big to do about retiring, they have all these farewell things, and they are back like a year or two later. I think Pete was like, "I don't want to go through that. When I'm done, I really want to be done." Took his time and made for him what is the correct decision. He obviously hasn't missed it much in the last 12 months and is happy in his now second life.