	products recent interviews FastScripts archive about ASAP Sports

Our Clients:

Browse by Sport

Find us on

Subscribe to RSS

Click to go to
Asaptext.com

View our
e-Brochure

SONY ERICSSON OPEN

March 28, 2007

Shahar Peer

KEY BISCAYNE, FLORIDA

THE MODERATOR: Questions please.

Q. Congratulations. How happy are you, and can you talk about your match?
SHAHAR PEER: I think I'm really happy, actually. I just talked to my mom, and I'm kind of getting pissed over every -- stupid things now. I don't know why. Maybe it's the first time getting to the semifinal, in tier one or a big tournament. And I was waiting for it long time.
So I just have to enjoy it. I'm really happy. I mean, I was expecting for a tougher match because Tatiana, she's a good player. She's very tough. But you know, maybe every time I go to the quarterfinal and I was losing, so maybe it was my turn to win.
I think I was playing smart. I was playing very solid, did what I had to do. In the end I was getting a little bit tight. I couldn't put two balls in the court and I was pushing. But it happens to everybody. I'm just happy from the way I was playing today.

Q. You've kept improving all along. What have you done to improve your game in this season?
SHAHAR PEER: In March I met Jose Garros, and in August, I changed my coaches, a little before already, but I decided with Odette and Molly, my fitness coach and tennis coach. Maybe all the team together brought me to being better.
I'm trying to be more aggressive to improve my serve so I can use my slice and come into the net, which is pretty hard, it takes time. But to try to use more things in my game, and that's what I'm trying to improve.

Q. So you've been out in Palm Springs though?
SHAHAR PEER: Yeah, I've been there for a month with Odette and Molly in the preparation in December and I was there after Memphis for two weeks and the tournament. I was there before US Open and after US Open, and I'll be there probably during the next few weeks. I don't know how many. It depends, because we have also Fed Cup here in Canada. So I still have a little bit of time in the U.S.

Q. Jose was such a great clay court player.
SHAHAR PEER: I don't know yet. I talked to him about the schedule, but he's happy, and he's helping me out, and he's helping Odette, also, because Odette is not very experienced when he decide to work with me. But he's doing a very good job, and he learned a lot, and I think we're doing a good job together.
I know he was a good clay court player, also hard court. But he was specialist on clay. And I hope it will give me some good teaching for the next season.

Q. You meet the winner of Serena and Vaidisova. Can you talk about each of them and how would you like to meet Serena again?
SHAHAR PEER: I mean, both of them are very good players. Serena is playing very well, and Nicole is playing really good the last two years. She's been improving so much. She's so young. I've known her from -- since I was 11 we were playing doubles, and we won the title under 12.
But sure they will have a tough match today, and whoever will win I will get ready for tomorrow.

Q. What has life been like for you since the Australian Open in Israel?
SHAHAR PEER: In Israel?

Q. Yes, what's it been like?
SHAHAR PEER: I was there after -- Tokyo after the tournament in Australia, and it was not very easy. I wasn't really ready for everything. It was a pretty big thing after the tournament in Australia.
But I think next time I will come back, I will get used to it and I will know how to handle it. They support me and they are very nice to me, but I need to be ready how to react to the people.
It's not that easy, and I have to enjoy it.

Q. What do you mean? Can you be more specific?
SHAHAR PEER: Actually, everybody knows me. There is no one person that you know you cannot say in Israel my name and doesn't know who I am. So you know, I'm more popular there. Wherever I go they know me, so I don't have too much time for myself when I'm home.
Wherever I go with my friends, my family, so maybe to stay more home, to stay more in one place and concentrate more on tennis, because when I was there, I couldn't really concentrate on tennis. Every second I had something, after practice, before practice, during the day. So with the media and everything, which like I said, I enjoy it. But I just have to learn how to handle it.

Q. Americans like to have autographs. Do Israelis like to have autographs, too?
SHAHAR PEER: Not really. They like to say what they think, but not really autographs.

Q. So if you go to a nightclub or a club in Israel?
SHAHAR PEER: No.

Q. They won't ask?
SHAHAR PEER: No, they will stare at me, talk to me, shake my hand or something. Usually if it's my age or a little older than me, they will scream something to me but won't ask for an autograph or picture or anything.

Q. No proposals of marriage?
SHAHAR PEER: No.

Q. Prime Minister Ohmert, when was the last time you talked to him and how often do you talk, and when was the first time he ever contacted you?
SHAHAR PEER: We don't speak that often, you know. He's still the prime minister. It's not every week, but the first time he called me it was after the French Open, when I lost to Hingis, and the other time was after the loss to Serena. I just met him because of the Olympic Committee in Israel, they had the meeting with him, so I met him there. He's a very big fan of sport, you know. It's not only tennis or only me, he likes sport in everything.

Q. Wherever you go, I know when you were in Miami, the Israeli Consulate had a reception for you. Is that often the case, especially when you are in New York or Los Angeles and there are large Jewish populations, that you get honored by the community?
SHAHAR PEER: Actually, no. It was first time that I got this reception. I don't know how you call it in English, which was very nice, I tell you that.

Q. How about in Miami? What's it like here for you? There's a pretty big Jewish population. Have you found people have been supporting you? I saw some Israeli flags.
SHAHAR PEER: Yeah, on the big court you don't really feel it. But I did hear the guys who were sitting up there, but they came also the last match against Kuznetsova, and after I played really late at night in doubles. And when I played Kuznetsova, it was a small court, smaller than the stadium. Almost all the people were for me, and it was a good atmosphere. So I really like when they support me and everybody's coming for me.

Q. Were they yelling anything in Hebrew or singing anything?
SHAHAR PEER: The guys?

Q. The fans. I don't know, I heard people.
SHAHAR PEER: Just my name.

Q. Where are your grandparents from?
SHAHAR PEER: My grandparents, the father of my dad is from South Africa. His mom is from Israel. The father of my mom is from Czechoslovakia, and also the mother of my mom.

Q. Very multi-national?
SHAHAR PEER: Yeah.

Q. Were they concentration camp survivors, your grandparents?
SHAHAR PEER: The what?

Q. I thought I read that.
SHAHAR PEER: Yeah, the side of my mom.

Q. Next week, how do you celebrate Passover?
SHAHAR PEER: I don't know yet. That's a good question. I don't know yet. I have to think about it. I have next week tournament, so I will see how it is going.

Q. With this tournament, I think you go over the $1 million mark. Is that kind of nice? Do you think of money at all for your career?
SHAHAR PEER: Yeah, I heard it already a few days ago from the media in Israel, but like I always said, I never think about money. I'm still young, and you know, the million dollars, it's just how much I make, it's not really how much I have in my bank. So it doesn't really matter. If I would start thinking about money, it would be pretty hard for my career.

Q. I wanted to ask you also about the Dubai tournament. I know that's one of the tournaments I guess in this new format that you have to play in, or supposedly. Is that something that you would go to or that you would skip?
SHAHAR PEER: Because I am in the Army, I cannot really go to Dubai and Doha, as a soldier in the Army. So I cannot answer this for right now.

End of FastScripts

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297