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U.S. OPEN

September 3, 2007

Shahar Peer

NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK

THE MODERATOR: Questions.

Q. Your doubles partner an even fans in the stands were saying they haven't seen you play this crisply maybe ever. How do you respond to that? Do you agree you're playing your best tennis right now?
SHAHAR PEER: Actually thanks. But I think in Australia I was playing very sharp also after the preparation. In December I was playing really good. I think I was starting pretty slow the beginning of the tournament. My first round was not good.
But round by round I'm playing better and better. Hope I will keep playing better.

Q. Is that maybe what you learned from the Australia experience, that it really doesn't matter? As long as you advance in the first week, you really want to peak the second week, but don't get worried if it's not perfect in week one?
SHAHAR PEER: No. I mean, every match, like I said, the first match I was not playing my tennis, and the second I was already playing aggressive, and the third one I had a tough one. Also today.
I think I'm playing the same. I mean, the same answer as before. I think I'm playing better and better every match. It's right, I was in the quarters in Australia. But I was playing different opponents, had tough rounds there also.
I'm happy I'm reaching the quarters here. I just want to keep on.

Q. Do you think you get greater fan support here in New York?
SHAHAR PEER: Yeah, definitely.

Q. Do you have any direct connection, relatives here?
SHAHAR PEER: No relatives. But I have some family, the Law (phonetic) family I was playing before the Open, like the week of the practice I was staying with them. They come every time to support me. But there are so many Jewish here, so many Israelis, that I have huge support here.
I go on the court and I feel like I'm playing in Israel or something. It's so much fun. It's really nice to play when you have so much support.

Q. You stay with a family here?
SHAHAR PEER: No, not this week. I was moving Friday before the beginning of The Open.

Q. A family you got to know when you were a junior?
SHAHAR PEER: No. My dad knows the man, Joey. His name is Joey. He knows him. They invited us to stay in their house if we want. We were staying. We had a lot fun there.

Q. Where are they located?
SHAHAR PEER: It's like 30 minutes from here. Not in the city. The other side.

Q. Long Island?
SHAHAR PEER: No. I don't know exactly the address.

Q. Do you have any sense from anyone back home what kind of big deal it is? Are people following?
SHAHAR PEER: I know it was on Eurosport, so they were following the match. Usually I prefer not to get involved with the media in Israel when I'm in the tournament because it's too much. I prefer to stay really focused in the tournament.
But I know they support me a lot in Israel. Whenever I do well, they're always there for me. I don't know actually what is the reaction. Probably you can ask my family. I don't really know. I don't actually look at that.

Q. Why do you say it's too much? Is it too many people interviewing you?
SHAHAR PEER: No, because if I'm going to start with one, I don't know, newspaper, so the next one wants me, then the radio wants me. I cannot be all day on the phone or those things.
I prefer to stay focused whenever I'm in the tournament. After the tournament, I have no problem to be interviewed.

Q. Is your family here?
SHAHAR PEER: Yeah, they are, except my sister.

Q. Are you still in the Army or have you fulfilled your commitment?
SHAHAR PEER: I'm supposed to finish in October, this October.

Q. Will you go back here to Israel?
SHAHAR PEER: Yeah. So I think kind of after I'm coming back from here, it's kind of my last time because then I go for four weeks to Europe and then I'm supposed to finish the Army.

Q. You are a secretary?
SHAHAR PEER: Yeah, kind of. I mean, I don't really -- I mean, I do things when I'm coming back home, whatever they ask me when I go to the office.

Q. What are the sort of things they ask you to do?
SHAHAR PEER: Different. I cannot say particularly something. Different things.

Q. Do you have to answer phones?
SHAHAR PEER: Sometimes, yeah. It depends. I cannot have one thing that I'm doing because I'm so much not there. They cannot give me a job because whenever I'm gone, who is gonna do it? Whenever I'm there, I'm doing whatever they ask me. I'm trying to help as much as I can.

Q. You practice in the afternoon?
SHAHAR PEER: I practice in the morning, in the afternoon. I go lunchtime a few hours during the week.

Q. How long did it take you to complete?
SHAHAR PEER: Two years.

Q. Do people treat you special when you're there because of your athletic accomplishments?
SHAHAR PEER: I hope not. I mean, they are trying to help me, to let me do my career as normal as the other players. You see it doesn't affect anything. That's the goal. When I went to the Army, they know what I have to do. I knew what I have to give them.
They have a special program for the athletes which they let you go and travel and everything. I'm doing whatever they ask me. I hope they appreciate it.

Q. Not to look ahead too far, but if you wind up playing Anna, you've had tough matches this summer. What have you learned from those matches?
SHAHAR PEER: With her, tough matches? I haven't played here this summer. I played her in Indian Wells.

Q. Anna Chakvetadze?
SHAHAR PEER: Yeah.

Q. Do you think playing the doubles took too much strength from you not to concentrate on the singles?
SHAHAR PEER: No. Why? It's not that I lost in singles because of doubles. I'm still in the tournament in singles.

Q. When you have to play more games...
SHAHAR PEER: You see it didn't affect anything. Unfortunately, we lost today. Was a tough match. I'm happy always to play singles and doubles.

Q. Does it somehow help you in the singles?
SHAHAR PEER: Yeah. I'm not really serving and volley, which I am supposed to do more and more, I think. But it helps the return and it helps to improve the volleys and everything.

Q. What does Jose want you to do more of? What does he single out for you to improve?
SHAHAR PEER: Many things. I mean, I don't know. I'm working a lot on my tennis to develop everything, whatever I can.

Q. You're the second Israeli to reach a Grand Slam quarterfinal. What would it mean to be the first to reach a semifinal?
SHAHAR PEER: It would be huge. I mean, but I don't like -- you know, the record, the ranking record is 15. I did it. Smashnova did it. I was thinking a lot after the Australian did I want to break the 14th. I think it's pretty a big mistake.
The same as reaching the semifinal. I just have to not think about those things and just play my game and go out there and give everything I have.

Q. Growing up, what did you consider the greatest accomplishment either by an Israeli athlete or team? Was there something that you looked up to that was the best sporting event you had seen?
SHAHAR PEER: Not that I remember.

Q. After your singles match, it looked like you were aiming the tennis balls that they have you autograph at people who had the Israeli flag.
SHAHAR PEER: One of them, I saw the Israeli flag and I was trying to. I mean, I had so much support there, so many people were supporting me, so I didn't really care who's going to get the ball. I really appreciate how they support me here.

Q. When you're in New York, do you often hear Hebrew being shouted on the court?
SHAHAR PEER: Yeah, a lot.

Q. What are they shouting?
SHAHAR PEER: I don't know. Like c'mon, go all the way to the final, those kind of things.

Q. Were you aware that Alex Rodriguez, the Yankees player, watched your match the other day? What is it like to know that a superstar was watching?
SHAHAR PEER: I didn't know till they showed him on the screen because I'm not looking around. I also saw he left before the end of the match. Because I remember I didn't see him.
You know, people like tennis and they like sport. I was happy he was there. I mean, I hope he enjoyed it. We also go sometimes to basketball games when they give us in Miami, whenever we have opportunity.
I mean, we're a sports player. They are a sports player. They like to watch different things.

Q. You don't hold it against him that he left early?
SHAHAR PEER: No.

Q. How long were you paired with Sania Mirza as a doubles partner? Did you decide not to play together for tennis reasons?
SHAHAR PEER: When we decided not to play?

Q. You are still going to be a doubles partner with Sania?
SHAHAR PEER: Yeah, I was talking with Garbin before even after French Open to play US Open. Then with Sania, we play -- we were playing in Wimbledon, but I already had a partner which I was happy to play with Garbin.
We were doing well together. It's not that we're not going to play anymore.

Q. Are you a product of an Israeli tennis program or are you an individual who grew up playing tennis in Israel and gained experience elsewhere?
SHAHAR PEER: I was playing in the centers from six to 12, when I was six to 12, then I moved to the Federation since then. But I'm kind of individual. The Federation support me. I'm part of the Federation.

End of FastScripts

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