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U.S. OPENAugust 30, 2013Jamie HamptonNEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK S. STEPHENS/J. Hampton THE MODERATOR: Questions, please. Q. Is it difficult for you to play against Sloane Stephens who is a friend and teammate, or is it a healthy competitive relationship? JAMIE HAMPTON: I think it's just healthy. Q. How much of that was nerves and how do you think you handled the occasion? JAMIE HAMPTON: I don't know. I think that I've had tendencies, shown tendencies to play really bad in big moments. Kind of sucks. I'm incredibly, incredibly disappointed in the way I played today. Nerves, you know, I think I felt fine going out there. Stadium is pretty big. But I got to hit on it before. I've played on Rod Laver and Indian Wells stadium a couple times, as well. I don't think that was too overwhelming. Q. Is it the sheer size of the court? There's swirling winds as well. JAMIE HAMPTON: Yeah, it was a little windier than I thought it was going to be. The court size itself, I kind of liked it. Thought it was a nice court. Q. Do you think that's the biggest difference right now between you and Sloane, is the mental part? JAMIE HAMPTON: I think that she's had a lot more experience on the big stage. I think personality‑wise she embraces it a little better than I do. With my personality, I tend to shy away from it a little bit. It's a little bit of a struggle, but it's something that's being addressed currently, so... Q. How are you addressing it? JAMIE HAMPTON: Speaking with my team, sports psychologist, just trying to get over it and embrace it a little bit more. Q. We don't get to hear athletes talk about sports psychologists. What are some of the issues that come up? JAMIE HAMPTON: You don't want to hear my issues, believe me (smiling). Everybody has their own issues. The girls differ from the guys. Girls are a little bit more emotional. We'll just leave it at that. Q. The fact that the two of you are friends... JAMIE HAMPTON: Not that we're friends. I don't think so. I look at Sloane as another competitor, somebody that I want to beat. Q. Do you think she has gotten tougher in big matches? JAMIE HAMPTON: I think she just likes the big matches, you know. She shows up to play at the slams, for sure. Q. A lot of people didn't know your name; got to know it this tournament. Hopefully it's a launching pad for bigger and better things. JAMIE HAMPTON: I certainly hope so. I'm incredibly disappointed right now. If I'm looking at it big picture, last year at this time, I didn't play any warmup events. I tried playing ranked 80 in the world. To be seeded a year later here at the Open, making it past the first round ever for the first time, it's definitely a step in the right direction and a lot of progress. Q. What do you make of Sloane's rivalry with Serena? JAMIE HAMPTON: Less than you guys do. I mean, I think that Serena is the No.1 player in the world. She's possibly the greatest player of all time. Sloane is Sloane. You know, she's making her own name. She's top 20 in the world for a reason. I think they're both separate. They're both great players, both great competitors. I don't really make too much of it. Q. Early in the match you broke back, saved that game point to get things level. Next game, hit the shot wide. Is that an instance where Sloane's athleticism or her speed is in the back of your mind or is that your own creativity for wanting to hit the 'wow' shot? JAMIE HAMPTON: Sloane moves very well side to side. I had her pinned in that one corner and I wanted to drop her and make her move forward. Obviously didn't work out too well for me. But I think that's actually when I kind of lost the match or the set, was when I was up 40‑Love in that game and I didn't manage to break back, yeah. Q. Did you play college tennis? JAMIE HAMPTON: I gave a verbal to Florida, but I never went. I didn't play college tennis. Q. Next up do you know what your schedule is for the fall? JAMIE HAMPTON: I think I'm going to play Seoul, Tokyo, Beijing and Osaka. Then it's off‑season time. Q. If you win one of them, you might get into Sofia? JAMIE HAMPTON: Really? THE MODERATOR: Top six to win an international title, plus two wild cards. JAMIE HAMPTON: You can tell I've never been there before (smiling). Q. Do you notice a difference in Sloane, the way she's been playing, going more for her shots? JAMIE HAMPTON: No. I actually thought at Wimbledon she played a lot more aggressive. Today I thought she was hitting the ball very short, and I was too far behind the baseline to hurt somebody that moves that fast. I didn't want to come forward until late in the second set and start hitting out on my shots. I was definitely tentative. At Wimbledon, I thought she played a lot more aggressive. Q. Are you planning on watching coverage the rest of the way here? JAMIE HAMPTON: I don't know yet. Q. I was talking to Taylor Townsend a couple months ago. When she gets nerves, she gets tight, she wants to be at the net. Both of you are so good at the net. Is that how your mind works or is it the opposite? JAMIE HAMPTON: I think my natural tendency is to come forward. However, the recent developments in my game, I've been struggling a little bit with it, trying to have better shot selection. I don't know. Sometimes I get a little confused with the transition and stuff. I've been drifting back a little bit more. I think that's one of the things I'll address in the off‑season. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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