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PILOT PEN TENNIS PRESENTED BY SCHICK

August 27, 2009

Elena Vesnina

NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT

E. VESNINA/A. Chakvetadze
6-1, 7-5

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. You've never beaten Anna before. What was the difference today?
ELENA VESNINA: Today was a very tough match, like always we have with Anna. But maybe if it will compare with our match few weeks ago in Cincinnati, it was a big difference.
So it's always tough to play against your good friend. I don't know why she has like 5-Love against me. Like, I cannot explain why. Because I think I have everything to beat her. But always something happened, you know.
But she's playing not like she was playing like a few years ago. If you will compare, she's a bit down right now.

Q. Since you know her so well, do you see anything in her game that's preventing her from playing well or is it more mental?
ELENA VESNINA: It is mental. Actually right now she's playing much better than she was playing in the spring during the clay season. She's improving. She has a new coach. I can see right now she's playing much better than she was playing few months ago.
She was very unconfident, you know. But right now I can see that she's finding her game.

Q. How are you playing right now?
ELENA VESNINA: I'm happy with my game. And today had a lot of long rallies. I cannot say it was like boom-boom tennis. It was like I can say intelligent maybe. We were trying to put the ball in the right corner of the court, you know, we were trying to mix it up, we were trying to do some good serves, you know, mixing with the serve, mixing like going to the net sometimes.
So I think it was very spectacular match today.

Q. I noticed you used the dropshot a lot today. Was that intentional, a strategy you went out there with?
ELENA VESNINA: When I always play with Anna, she stay like two meters behind the baseline running, reaching every balls, playing - how you say - low from the net and very short. Compared to Sam Stosur, she's playing so deep, so strong. Anna is using your power, pushing the ball actually on the other side.
I was trying all the time hitting one, two, three balls, then I was doing a mistake. That's why I was trying, if she's staying so far from the baseline, you should change something, so I start to do dropshots.

Q. Have you looked at the US Open draw?
ELENA VESNINA: Just one minute ago.

Q. You're all in the same section with Vera.
ELENA VESNINA: I didn't see. I just saw my first round. We were just watching, me and the other Russian girls, were watching who was playing Russian players right now. So many of them. Oh, my God, this, this, this (laughter).

Q. Any thoughts about your first round?
ELENA VESNINA: I never play against her before. I saw a few her matches. I think she had a pretty solid year. I think she was in the final this year in Istanbul. I think it's going to be very tough first-round match.

Q. You were good on about 83% of your first serves. She only had 50%. Does that surprise you, that there was such a difference?
ELENA VESNINA: That was a strategy for the match. I was trying to put as much as I can first serves in. For her, she's struggling a little bit with her serves. I knew she's not confident with that. That's not her big weapon. So her second serve always was not that powerful. If you compare with Sam Stosur, with the kick, come all over here (laughter). It was a bit much easier to return.

Q. Any thoughts on your semifinal match here? You beat Kuznetsova earlier this year. If it's her or Mauresmo, any thoughts on that?
ELENA VESNINA: I don't know who's gonna win this match actually at the night session. I think Mauresmo is maybe not playing her best tennis right now. The same with Sveta. She's fighting every match. Has long matches the day before, and first-round match. I don't know who is going to win, but definitely is going to be a very interesting match.

Q. Will you watch?
ELENA VESNINA: Yeah, I'll watch.

Q. Who do you prefer to play?
ELENA VESNINA: Oh, this is a good question. I don't know. Maybe Sveta, so is for sure going to be a Russian final (laughter). Somebody from Russia is going to be in the final like this.

End of FastScripts

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