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WIMBLEDONJune 29, 2007Serena WilliamsLONDON, ENGLAND THE MODERATOR: Questions for Serena Williams. Q. Pretty good all around? SERENA WILLIAMS: Yeah, pretty good all around. Q. Give me your assessment of how you feel you're playing, how you played today. SERENA WILLIAMS: You know what, I'm playing really well. I'm feeling really good. I'm feeling really positive. I'm feeling like, you know, I'm going to get there. Q. How's the movement with the hamstring? SERENA WILLIAMS: Yeah, the movement's well. My hamstring is a lot better, which I'm really excited about. It's the first time it's felt this good. So it's just, you know, all coming together. Q. Is that because of treatment or it's gradually gotten better? SERENA WILLIAMS: I think it's definitely due to treatment, you know, just stretching it, getting everything fixed. Definitely, yeah. Q. Must be a big mental relief not to have to go out there and contend with that? SERENA WILLIAMS: It's definitely a mental relief knowing I don't have the pain I had before. I'm running better now, moving better, just seeing the ball better. Q. You said you gave yourself 2 out of 10, then 6 out of 10. What was your score for this one? SERENA WILLIAMS: I'm at about a 6 or a 7 today. Just steady pace. Peaking at the right times, playing the big points well. Q. You played Daniela plenty. Talk about that match-up. SERENA WILLIAMS: Yeah, I've played her a lot. I think she's beaten me once in a Grand Slam. I know it's definitely going to be a tough match. It's going to be interesting. She serving well, moving well. She's really fit. I'm serving well, I'm moving well, and I'm really fit. It's going to be exciting. Q. Can you detect different changes in strategies that she uses against you? She tends to play a lot of three-setters and makes adjustments. You've seen her enough. Do you play her straightforward or see what she's going to bring on the day? SERENA WILLIAMS: I definitely see what she's going to bring on the day - not only her, but everyone else. Everyone's bringing something different. You know, you always have to kind of look at it and bring your best game as well. Q. You've talked about this a ton, but you'll be going into the second week. Is it a different mentality? You'll get Saturday off, Sunday off, then Monday. Different attitude? Is it game time? SERENA WILLIAMS: Absolutely. This is Wimbledon for me. This is one of my favorite tournaments. I'm ready to play now. This is great. I couldn't be more ready to compete in any event. Q. 43 minutes. Did it feel like one of the quickest matches in a long time for you? SERENA WILLIAMS: It definitely felt like one of the quickest matches in a long time. But at the same time, I don't know, I just felt really focused. I was really just out there to play tennis. Q. Henin in the quarters. SERENA WILLIAMS: I have to win another match still. Q. Don't want to look any further? SERENA WILLIAMS: No. I have a very tough fourth-round match. I have to get over that hump first. Q. You're on record saying -- I don't know if you actually said the quote, but it's attributed to you -- that you'd never get to No. 1 again. Do you think there could come a time you could come back again? You're on record saying that in January. SERENA WILLIAMS: I never said that. Q. I saw it on the Internet. SERENA WILLIAMS: I would never, never say something so negative about myself. I know the press did. I never, never would say that about me. I always thought I could be No. 1 again. I expect to be the best in the world. Like I said, when I am playing well, I am the best. I would never say anything like that. Q. Do you know Laura's game at all? Do you sort of feed off each other when you're playing well? SERENA WILLIAMS: I know Laura's game a lot. I mostly feed off of Venus, especially in this tournament, because we're in a different locker room than Laura. I'm real happy for her. She had a good match today. I got to see a little bit of it myself. It's better than last year (smiling). Q. If form holds, Venus likely will play Maria in the fourth round. I'm wondering if you plan to break that match down for Venus, because you've had some good success against Maria? SERENA WILLIAMS: Yeah, I didn't know that. Venus has the game to beat Maria, especially on grass. Venus has a great serve. I mean, she runs like the wind. She's so tall. She's playing well. She definitely has the game to beat her. With that being said, she just has to go out there and do it. And she can do it. Q. On the BBC they were claiming you might have been inspired by meeting Jonathan Ross on his talk show. SERENA WILLIAMS: That's definitely provided all my inspiration to doing well in The Championships. Q. How was that for you? SERENA WILLIAMS: It was fun. He's a great guy. I had a lot of fun. Q. Claimed he might have groped you or something. SERENA WILLIAMS: No, I didn't get groped. I don't allow myself to be groped, no. Q. Assess your level today. Did she just not play well? Were you really in control of the match? SERENA WILLIAMS: I thought she played well. I mean, she had some chances. I think she was up 40-Love on my serve. I didn't want to lose serve. I just came back, just stayed focused. I think more or less it was me. I mean, I think regardless, it was going to be me to win or lose the match. That's I think what it boiled down to. Q. Is that the best match of the tournament so far for you? SERENA WILLIAMS: Absolutely. Definitely. I didn't play so bad against Alicia Molik. She's a good player on the grass. She was playing some funky shots. It was definitely a good match for both. Q. When you're rolling along like today, is this 2002 again, the early years? SERENA WILLIAMS: The early years, yeah. Those were the days. Those were the glory days. Those were the glory days. Q. Anna-Lena Groenefeld claims being harassed by a former coach. There's been stories by Patty Schnyder. What can be done to protect young girls growing up striving to be tennis professionals? SERENA WILLIAMS: You know what, I think it's important to have good parents. If I didn't have my mom and dad traveling with me, especially coaching, they take advantage. You're on the tour. It's hard. Sometimes they don't give you enough rooms. They only give you one room. Next thing you know, the coach takes advantage. You know, this is not funny, but it's really important to travel with a parent or someone that knows you well. You see the girls that do travel with their parents, they have a little better results. They don't have to deal with that. Unfortunately, not everyone has that. I was really blessed to have that opportunity. That's the only thing I can advise. Q. Are you going to play doubles with Venus in Beijing Olympics? SERENA WILLIAMS: It's not up to me. That would be nice, but it's not up to me. Q. It's up to who? SERENA WILLIAMS: I don't know actually. End of FastScripts |
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