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PACIFIC LIFE OPEN

March 8, 2003

Vera Zvonareva

INDIAN WELLS, CALIFORNIA

MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. You appear to be very flushed. Are you having problems with the sun? Your face is pretty red is what I'm saying.

VERA ZVONAREVA: Yeah, I just came from the court. I was playing like two hours and a half. Maybe that's why.

Q. Two hours and a half?

VERA ZVONAREVA: I guess.

Q. Do you have any goals for where you would like to go this year in the rankings after having made that advance a year ago from 371 to 45? Where are you trying to get this year?

VERA ZVONAREVA: In the beginning of the year, I just thought to be in the Top 30.

Q. Top 20?

VERA ZVONAREVA: Top 30. I'm playing -- I just try to reach Top 30. Then if it goes well, maybe something else. But first I want to be in Top 30.

Q. How tough of a match was that? That was a real back-and-forth struggle.

VERA ZVONAREVA: I don't know, I just kept playing because I played Juniors, Orange Bowl final, against Svetlana. It was tough, it was really tough. And then when I was losing like 6-5 second set, I was like lucky couple times. I decided just I should keep playing.

Q. But you played a good tiebreaker.

VERA ZVONAREVA: Yeah, second set.

Q. But mentally I saw in the second set you were getting frustrated a lot.

VERA ZVONAREVA: Yeah, because I had some big mistakes. Like I should have win those points and I did mistakes. I was like, "Okay, what should I do? Try to hit again or I should play defense?" When I tried to attack, I had the mistakes. It was like I didn't know what to do.

Q. So how did you manage to win the third set?

VERA ZVONAREVA: Then I said, "Okay, I try to count five balls in." It was going well, then I just started to play my game in the third set.

Q. So your conditioning was good enough to say, "I will play long points"?

VERA ZVONAREVA: Yeah, yeah, I was okay.

Q. You're a young player. There are a lot of young Russians. I wonder what you think of the limits on the number of tournaments that the young players can play. Do you think that's a good rule or do you think they should change the amount of tournaments the players can play when they're coming on tour?

VERA ZVONAREVA: Actually I think it's a good real because you get enough tournaments to play. If you are doing really well, they don't count the Grand Slams as a tournament. So I think it's pretty good, because if you start to play like 25 tournaments a year and then each year you have to defend points, you automatically start to play more tournaments, more and more, then you getting tired. So if, for example, I started to play 15 tournaments a year, then I play 17, now it's maybe a little bit more. It's good.

Q. So you think the number is good that they have?

VERA ZVONAREVA: Yeah, I think it's good.

Q. Is it harder for you to play another Russian girl right around your age?

VERA ZVONAREVA: Yeah, I think. I think it's hard to play against everyone. I don't know. Sometimes it's really good when you play Russians because you won't understand what level am I now and what level they are because we are growing up together. I don't know, actually. It's just like another -- I mean, like to play against other players, the same.

Q. So mentally winning that match, that must have been very important for you today, to be able to beat her?

VERA ZVONAREVA: Yeah, it was important to beat her and to make my best on the court, because in the beginning I just missed a lot and I didn't play my tennis, my game. It was very important to play my game today. Actually, I did it in the third set.

Q. Over the past year, do you feel like your results have been very up and down a lot or are you finding a consistent level with your tennis?

VERA ZVONAREVA: You know, it's tough to say because last year, I played against players who were ranked like 80 and maybe lower, and some matches I played against high-ranked players. This year I started to play like main -- like in the main draw of the tournament. So I play like high-ranked players. It's tough to understand because I didn't play all those matches against them.

Q. When you're playing against the high-ranked players, do you feel your game is there to stay with them or are you still learning about how you need to play against the better players?

VERA ZVONAREVA: You know, each day is different. Sometimes I feel they just kill me. Sometimes I feel I'm just killing them. It depends.

Q. Has anybody ever told you that you look a little like Kim Clijsters?

VERA ZVONAREVA: No.

Q. When you played Clijsters at the US Open, you were very close to winning. Did you feel you had many chances in that match?

VERA ZVONAREVA: Yeah.

Q. You lost 6-4 in the third.

VERA ZVONAREVA: Actually, I had chances in the second set against her. I was just really nervous. I didn't make it that time maybe.

Q. You won the first set, I gather?

VERA ZVONAREVA: Right. Maybe I will make it next time.

Q. What do you expect out of yourself other than rankings this year? What do you want to do with your tennis this year?

VERA ZVONAREVA: I just want to keep playing and try to play my best tennis each match.

Q. And what about here now that you're into the third round? I think you have Shaughnessy.

VERA ZVONAREVA: I'm not sure. I don't know.

Q. Talk about that a little bit, playing a player of that caliber.

VERA ZVONAREVA: Yeah, I mean, I never played against Shaughnessy before. I mean, I just want to try my best and then we'll see what's going to happen.

Q. Earlier you said in the match you played today you asked yourself, "What should I do? Try to hit again?" What did you decide?

VERA ZVONAREVA: You know, I remember, she played me a short ball and I hit it and I won it. I said, " Okay, next time the same." And it's happen next time. So I just found what I wanted to do.

End of FastScriptsâ€¦.

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