	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

ROGERS CUP WOMEN

August 11, 2011

Maria Sharapova

TORONTO, ONTARIO

G. VOSKOBOEVA/M. Sharapova
6-3, 7-5

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. When the week began, everyone was talking about the parity on this tour. Was today an example of that?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: About what?

Q. Was today an example of the parity on this tour about how many dangerous players there are?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: Well, obviously she played really well this tournament. You could tell today that she came to the match with a lot of confidence, swinging away, you know, going for the first serve and her shots.
You know, I think if she consistently could play like that, obviously, you know, she wouldn't be ranked where she is today. She showed that she can play really great tennis.

Q. Was there anything that you felt you were missing today?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: Oh, I felt in the first set, you know, I didn't break her once, and I don't think I even saw break point, which is, you know, not really great, because then obviously she has a tremendous amount of confidence when she's returning. You know, she doesn't feel anything when she's stepping on the line on the service game. I don't think I really did enough on those.

Q. Even before this tournament there was talk about the women's side of tennis and how maybe the top 10 is not always as consistent as the top 4 like on the men's side of tennis. Here we are less than three days into the tournament, and I think it's 10 of the top 16 seeds being out, you being the 10th, and I think another one was about to fall as I walked in the room. Wondering what your thoughts are on the current state of tennis. Does this hurt or help the game that anyone can win on any given day, or is it hurting that you don't have that consistent core at the top like the men's side does?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: Well, I think it makes for an exciting story, because, you know, at the end of the day, no matter what you're ranked or seeded, you know, the reason we go out and play the match is, you know, to know who's gonna be the winner on that day.
Whether you're No. 1 in the world or you're facing someone that's 100 or so, you still have to go out and win. That's what the sport is all about.
Obviously you want to put yourself in the best position, and, you know, be as high as you can in the rankings, but you still have to go out and win those matches where, you know, you're not necessarily playing a top player but playing someone that's come in and is playing extremely well.

Q. Can you explain how the lack of preparation and playing tournaments, like you've only -- this is only your second tournament since Wimbledon, the final. How does that affect your game? We have seen that like across the board today, like favorites losing today.
MARIA SHARAPOVA: Yeah, it's obviously -- you know, we have a pretty long summer, and it starts in the clay season, and, you know, you gear up for that. And it's a pretty short turnaround from the French to Wimbledon.
You know, then I think all of us give ourselves a bit of a vacation after that, because, you know, we're on the road and traveling with back-to-back Grand Slams.
So I think after that it takes everyone a little bit of time to get the rust off again and to get going, because to always -- obviously we want to win every tournament, but we also have to be realistic in terms of, you know, sometimes it's not gonna go our way or we're not gonna feel great.

Q. When you were facing the three match points, she double-faulted twice and then sent it back into the net. She seemed very frustrated at that point. At that point did you think that the match could turn? Did you think you were back in control or had a chance to get control?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: Yeah, I did, but, you know, it was still 5-All in the second, and she played a really great game there. She didn't give me any easy points, and, you know, I thought I served well in that game and, you know, she just -- I think she was just really going for it.

Q. Did you feel rusty at all today?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: Oh, I mean, I guess you could say that because I haven't played too many matches since Wimbledon, but at the end of the day, it doesn't really matter.

Q. You don't think it matters, then, to be rusty, to not have so many games under your belt or to have such a long layoff?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: I can't really think that way. Obviously if you're thinking that way -- it's obviously the reality and that's the way it is, but you're -- you know, if you come in thinking that, you know, even in a situation where you don't feel you're playing great or something's not working, I can't go into a match having that attitude. You always have to be positive.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297