WIMBLEDON

July 3, 2001

Lindsay Davenport

MODERATOR: Good afternoon, Ladies and Gentlemen. Lindsay Davenport. First question, please.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: Well, I thought I played well. I thought after a day of a lot of drama my match was pretty mellow out there. But I thought I played solid and did everything that I wanted to do. You know, she helped me out a lot by making it a little bit easier on me. Besides for maybe one lapse in the second set when I got one of the breaks that I probably shouldn't have gotten broken, I thought everything was great.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: Well, certainly not, especially in the quarterfinals. Kim has been playing very well. But you're always liking getting them when they're happening. Even after the first set, I thought I played well the first set, got on top of her early, and thought she would pick it up a little bit in the second set. Almost I think she maybe started playing even worse in the second set. That's unfortunate. I mean, she's a great player. She can do I think a lot better than what she played today.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: Well, I hope so. I mean, I think that some of the opponents that are playing now are maybe at a little bit of a higher level than were at Eastbourne. But, yeah, I mean, I'm in the semifinals, I won the tournament the week before, I'm on a pretty good roll. But, again, second week of Grand Slams are always the toughest. It certainly gets no easier from here on in. You know, I've just got to keep trying to do the best I can, play up to my potential.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: Okay.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: Well, one time was three sets, but I think the last two sets were like 2-1. Fed Cup was pretty close. The Australian Open, I think it was like 3-Love or something. I don't know, I think the last two times I've played her in Grand Slams she certainly didn't play at as high a level as she did at Fed Cup. US Open I don't remember all that well. But, I don't know. I think, you know, maybe I hit the ball a little hard and deep, and she can't control the point as well as she can against other players. I think she throws in some errors against me that maybe she doesn't do against other players. I haven't watched her play too many matches against the players, I know she beat Martina in Indian Wells, I saw some of the final against Serena. I don't think she's certainly played great the last two times she played me.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: That's nice. I think I can overpower a lot of girls. That's my game strategy going out there. That's what I try to accomplish. I don't necessarily go for winners. I go hard and go for deep shots, maybe even down the middle. Might not look as flashy as some other players hitting winners all the time, but certainly gets the job done for myself.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: She's getting close, huh (laughter)? Her and Henin, I've said from the beginning, I thought they were great players. I played Henin at the French two or three years ago, three sets. She was, I thought, great. I think both of them now I think are learning what it's like to be a consistently good player, not just one good week and a few bad weeks. They've really shown the last few weeks they're playing solidly the whole way through. That's what you have to do tournament to tournament. I think that they're learning. They're still young. You know, they're on their way up.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: Yeah, it's great. I mean, I think she's been playing very well here so far. She's the defending champion, beat me here last year. It's tough to play on this surface. She hits the ball extremely hard and serves well. You know, I'm going to have to play well. You know, I lost to her a number of times last year. Was able to beat her I think the last time we played at the end of the year. But, I mean, she's beaten me the last few times. I'm definitely going to have to play very good tennis to win.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: Well, I don't look at my career as like a mission.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: Right, no. No matter who I was playing in the semifinals, it was going to be really tough. But I look at it that, you know, I've played really well through the semis, and now it's time to play even better, and hopefully make it through.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: Here at Wimbledon?

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: I think I was up 6-5 in the second set, I had Love-30 on her serve. I don't know why I remember that. I should have broken, won the set there. You know, had a few chances on grass. A lot of times you get more chances. There I had just a few and didn't take advantage of them. She won her first Slam. But other than that, not too much.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: -- that was the difference in the match?

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: No. I mean, everyone really wants a Grand Slam title. You know, I certainly didn't go out there hoping to lose.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: Okay.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: Possibly. But in the same type, it's almost like personalities off the court. I'm pretty low-key, and they're pretty just totally different personality. I think in terms of matches, besides, you know, maybe pulling out of a tournament and a bump that was five years ago, I mean, Venus is pretty low drama on the court. She goes about her business, doesn't say much anymore. You know, just plays, wins or loses. I don't really think there's too much drama with her. Serena, you get a lot more drama in her matches. I think it's maybe a little unfair there to like lump them together.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: That's tennis, I guess. Seems to happen. I don't know, seems like Serena likes to do that against Jennifer. I saw them play in Miami. She was limping around. I saw her play at the French. Something was wrong there. And again today. I don't know if it's the losing or she has a mental thing with Jennifer. I'm not sure. You know, a lot of times when she's down, something happens with the trainer going on the court. It happened to me at the US Open when I was beating her.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: Don't know, but looks like that. Couldn't tell you for sure.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: What?

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: I think Jennifer handles it pretty well. I saw her roll her eyes at one point when she left the court. It's tough. How great is it to be in Jennifer's shoes? She always beats her. I think if you're always beating her, you don't care what the girl does.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: Champion, totally. I watched that match thinking the girl has a huge heart, doesn't give up, doesn't say much, keeps her mouth shut and fights her butt off till the end. You can't find anything more classy with that and more gutsy.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: Gee, I think they're both great. I've watched Henin play a few games today. She looked great. And, obviously, Jennifer is playing great. I think that's going to be a close match. I think obviously Jennifer is the favourite, but I think Henin is very good. So, no, if I get to the finals, I could care less who I play.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: It's exciting. It's nice to know that, you know, I didn't lose too much out. I mean, people were saying, you know, "Her movement is slower." People have said that for years. Somehow I've managed to be in the top two or three for four years now. You know, I'm happy that I was able to take a break like that for me - which for me was a long time - and still coming outplaying really well. I think a couple years ago I realised how important the Grand Slams were. I think my record the last few years in Grand Slams has been great, very consistent. This is really exciting. I mean, I was so devastated to miss the French. Didn't not want to miss playing here. So, you know, just to come back, get to the semis, and beat the newcomers, that's always fun. I mean, you never want to be the first match that makes the breakthrough win in a player's career. Now I feel like I'm the underdog going into the next match. It's a great feeling sometimes to be able to switch roles like that.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: I think it definitely helped me mentally out there. Obviously I'm going to start losing matches at some point. But, I mean, out there in tight situations, really you don't want to lose, but I think like, "This really isn't that big a deal anymore." Obviously, winning Wimbledon is a big deal. But watching the French Open sitting in a hospital room, you know, I was just out with a knee injury, was really kind of mind-boggling. I definitely cried when I had to pull out of the French. A week later, I was like, "That's ridiculous." So it's just a life lesson.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: No. I mean, I don't like getting a lot of stories written about me anyway. Obviously, I come out here and want to win the tournaments. If I'm the underdog, I'm the underdog in the media's eyes. I don't think the players disrespect me in any means. I certainly go out there thinking that, you know, I should win most every match I play.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: I think I'm the underdog in terms of sometimes the media. Not necessarily, like I said, the players. It's nice. I'm not a shy person, but a shy person in the sense that I don't like reading stories about myself. So it suits me fine. I definitely don't think it's hurt my career at all.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: Well, it certainly hasn't happened yet. They've been probably the best thing that's happened to tennis. I mean, everything that they say or even that dad says, you know, you guys have a heart attack about, write it all over the place. I mean, they give us so much exposure. They create all this drama for the sport. I don't think it's gotten bad yet. I think people are so intrigued by it that it's still helping the women's game tremendously.

LINDSAY DAVENPORT: I haven't heard too many comments this week. I don't know if he came out and said stuff. But I think a lot of times he says stuff just to shock you guys. I think he has fun with it. He says something, goes and laughs about it. I don't know, that's my opinion. I think he's smarter than what he likes people to perceive him as. I think he jokes around with you guys an awful lot.