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DUBAI DUTY FREE TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS WOMENFebruary 21, 2012Ana IvanovicDUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES A. IVANOVIC/F. Schiavone THE MODERATOR: Questions, please. Q. It was a tough first round to get, wasn't it? ANA IVANOVIC: Yeah, it was. I mean, it's such a small draw you can't really get an easy one. We always had long and tough matches. I was really impressed the way I started the match and played that first set, because I knew that was not going to, you know, probably last the second set. (Smiling.) She stepped up and she really hung in there and gave me a tough match in the second set. Q. When you went to serve out the match for the first time, did it make you nervous? ANA IVANOVIC: Not really. Not more than initially. No, I really actually tried not to think about the score today. I struggled couple of games from that side serving, and that kind of played in my mind a little bit. I tried to stay aggressive and tried to mix up, and I was probably trying too hard to do that. So, you know, I'm really happy I stayed calm and won that game on 5‑All. Because I had chances and then it got to 40‑30, so I'm really happy that I managed to break 5‑All. Q. You don't see many players send for their coach just before they're about to serve for the match. What was your thinking? ANA IVANOVIC: I didn't. He stood up. I had no choice. (Laughter.) Actually I saw him trying to stand up few times on 4‑5. I'm like, What are you doing? Let me be. Q. What did he say? ANA IVANOVIC: He just said, You're doing a good job. Just keep at it and be aggressive and step up and don't, you know, try to make it, just go for it. Q. Was it in the back of your mind at all that perhaps you may not have to play the next match because Maria was injured today? She has a neck injury. ANA IVANOVIC: I did not hear about that. I didn't look past the match tonight. I knew it was going to be a tough one. It's never easy to play Francesca. Q. What difference is it making to your tennis working with Nigel? ANA IVANOVIC:  I think it's been a lot of improvements actually since we started working together. It's a work in progress and it takes time to get to know each other and see whether you work good together or not. I think the improvements have been great. The biggest improvement were actually made in off‑season. That was the first time we had time to work on things. My serve, definitely needed improvement, and also my forehand, and, you know, still my backhand a little bit. So just overall, you know, still trying to get base game there and build on that. We still have a lot of work to do, but it's exciting. Q. Your forehand was one of your biggest weapons. ANA IVANOVIC: I know. That's the story of my life. I always thought my forehand was my best shot, and every coach I started working with, they're like, All right. We're going to change your forehand. I'm like, What's deal with that? But I must say I agree with Nigel, because I did have tendency to flatten out my forehand sometimes too much. It would have been at times lottery, so just trying to work on more spin and heaviness for the balls so it can stay under the pressure. Q. What are Nigel's qualities as a coach? You've had a number of coaches. Is he different to other coaches? ANA IVANOVIC: I think he understands me as a player and a person. I think that's a big part of it. You know, he's also very calm throughout my matches. I'm like, Show a little bit more emotion. But I think it's really good, because I'm perfectionist and I try to do everything right and sometimes get too excited. He tries to keep it a little bit calm, even though I know it's not easy sometimes. We communicate really good. Like I said, we have great understanding, and he can also see how I feel and how I respond to certain work and also know it's important have to proper time to prepare, proper time to rest. We travel so much and we work so hard, so it's important to rest. Many coaches just push through and players end up having too many injuries. Q. You've been working with him now for seven or eight months. You're still ‑ I think it's fair to say ‑ a little bit unpredictable, a little bit up and down. How long do you think it will take you to get the consistency you need? ANA IVANOVIC: It's really hard to say. You know, I mean, yeah, I wish it would be from this week onwards. It's always going to be up and down. We have so many tournaments, so many competitions, and you can't really, you know, play great every week‑ unless your Novak Djokovic. It's tough and it's always going to be up and down. I really hope to get my level up at the stage where I can compete consistently like through the semis and finals and stay deep in a tournament. Q. Since you were world No. 1 there's been another wave of the players in Wozniacki, Kvitova, Azarenka, all maybe two, three years younger than you. Do you think there is no reason why you can't get back to being as good as them? ANA IVANOVIC: Yeah. You know, it's really strange at 24 you're considered old. I think they're playing great. It's a great challenge for us, for players that have been around for a while. They're pushing us to improve and get better. I really believe that I can get back to the top and that I can be in the mix to win Grand Slams then. That's why I'm here, that's why I'm working hard. If that wasn't going to happen or if I didn't have feeling that can happen, I wouldn't be here. Q. You said last year that you were rather envious of Novak and his team, that he had so much fun playing tennis. A year on, do you feel as if there is more relaxation, more of that air in your own camp? ANA IVANOVIC: Yeah, I try to bring that. You know, my team is quite small now, which is nice. You know, there is less stress. You know, we really work good together and we try have to fun and to relax. It's important. It's still different. I think you cannot really compare girls and guys mentality. It's a lot different. (Smiling.) So, you know, as much as I can, you know, I try to enjoy it and take it lighthearted. Sometimes it's a bit hard. Q. Can I ask you one question about tennis in Serbia? You've had this fantastic generation ‑ you and Jelena, and in the men, Novak, Janko, Viktor ‑ but there aren't many 18, 19, 20 year olds, are there, who are pushing to get at the top? Is it difficult, do you think, for the next generation of Serbian players because of the standards that you have set? ANA IVANOVIC: Yeah, definitely. And then also what I feel like the players that are sort of one or two generations behind us, they had similar system that we had. It was really tough, because we had to sort of look for opportunities sometimes outside because with didn't have all the facilities in Serbia. But I think the younger ones now can really step up. We can help them and we can sort of develop and promote tennis and give them advices. Because there are so many talented kids, and everyone now plays tennis, and that's great to see. Still, Bojana is doing really well and she's young, she's improving. It's exciting, I think. Q. I spoke to Bojana, and she said she thinks that maybe it's a problem that the younger players get good support from the Federation now, which you didn't have, and maybe it's better to come through like you did when you had to really fight for everything. ANA IVANOVIC: Yeah, sometimes it is, you know, and it really challenges your character and makes you tougher. I think it's good for those young kids to have the support, because, you know, when it gets tough, you know, they have people who can push them and give them advice. It's good to see that that's developing and people are willing to invest and support them. I had great support from my family, and that's always been a big part for me. Not every kid is that fortunate. They have to a good system as well. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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