U.S. OPEN

September 8, 1996

Monica Seles

MONICA SELES: You might know more than I do. Simply because of Yonex, the racket company.

MONICA SELES: Yes.

MONICA SELES: I think Steffi played on key points much better today, but I think the key was her serve, that she just kept getting her first serve in. I had no chance of returning it and I had a much harder time holding my serve and that is where she got the breaks, pretty early on and I couldn't hold on. Again, after I broke her to be 5-All, and she just played, I think, on every level a little bit better today than I did.

MONICA SELES: No. I don't think -- I just think, you know, it was the same as before, no big deal. She just clearly was -- she served some awesome serves today and I wasn't doing that. I served some great ones, but then I served also some really weak ones.

MONICA SELES: I don't take injections, but I do take painkillers, yeah.

MONICA SELES: Yeah, but I have been taking them for like three, four months now, so, I don't think they had much difference now. I am used to it, I think. I had taken more before the match against Conchita and today because I knew I had to be better, little less pain, but no big deal.

MONICA SELES: No. I was just trying to stay focused at that point. That is all I was worried about because I had no control over the rain or anything else.

MONICA SELES: I think so, but I seem to feel one of the key points was my returning and I don't think I returned-- returned very bad against her last year in the finals and -- I mean, this year also, I think that was a little bit tough for me because I usually rush much better and I think, you know, you need to have more breakpoint chances than I was able to gather today.

MONICA SELES: I didn't notice that, no. I just think she got a little bit more confidence once she broke me in the first game of the second set.

MONICA SELES: No. That is pretty much my style too.

MONICA SELES: I think she served really well against me last year. I don't know. It is hard to compare, but definitely, I think most of - I shouldn't look over how fast she is serving, but I always do. She had tons of 95s first serves in and this close to the line (indicating inches). It is tough to return that, so, she definitely served well.

MONICA SELES: Well, I really didn't feel like that out there. I felt like I was going to run for every ball there is, you know. It definitely is hard when you work hard for a point; then you miss a return, kind of an unforced error definitely cools you down a little bit, but --

MONICA SELES: I don't know. I felt that if I could have, you know, I needed to hold my serves a little bit more and that is what I wasn't able to do today and also, you know, to break Steffi and - that is also tough. I am in the heat of the match, so, many other things are going on in your mind. I needed a little bit more time to reassess this match.

MONICA SELES: To play my game and just attack mostly as always. I really don't go in playing strategy against anybody.

MONICA SELES: Well, I pretty much have beaten Steffi before I got stabbed, before I had beaten her. I only played her twice now in the year that I have been back. Most times she was very close, but each time on the close points she played much better than I did, so, you know, all you can do is try to improve for the next match pretty much.

MONICA SELES: I think her record speaks -- she is a great player. She is winning constantly Grand Slam tournaments. She is still very young, so, she has a lot more in her. So, I mean, she is a great player and great athlete. When you have that combination, it is tough to play against anybody like that.

MONICA SELES: Well, I have been doing that in practice. Sooner or later, I better do it in a match or I am going to be 40 years old and still never try it, so, I might as well have tried it. That is my view on it. I think a few times it was successful and a few times I wasn't, but at least I had the guts to go in a few times today which I didn't do before in my life.

MONICA SELES: To going in?

MONICA SELES: Oh, yeah I will do that. I am just going to tell myself no pressure. That is the only way to learn or otherwise, I should just decide and not spend even a minute practicing the volleys.

MONICA SELES: Oh, always when you play somebody like Steffi, you know, you have to play some great tennis. It's a challenge. It is always fun. I mean, you know, when you play a close match, it is not fun like, I don't know, some other fun, but it is still great. I still wished I had some chances that I have done some things differently, but what is gone is gone and, you know, you move on. That is all I can do.

MONICA SELES: I definitely felt when I got the break at 5-All and to lose my serve again for her to go up 6-5 in the first set against Steffi, that is not going to fly and I should have -- but she played a great game and came back, from 40-15, after that, that kind of didn't help me much. Of course the second set, the first break, definitely.

MONICA SELES: After Atlantic City.

MONICA SELES: It hasn't been easy. After the Australian Open because there were so many different views and different things, we have been trying. I definitely never thought this shoulder would become what it became to be after taking so much time off. But, you know, I talked a lot -- two other athletes who had a similar problem. It is a very frustrating, slow process. The only thing I got to be careful is from the future on, what I will do with my serves and how many serves I am going to hit. I need though change a little bit, my motion after the shoulder is okay, but I think for me it will be important to stay on a regular schedule because like last year after the U.S. Open, I didn't play anything until the Australian and I don't want that to happen this year.

MONICA SELES: I pretty much think so. I think that is really important for me because I think I will be less injured. I will just feel better and stronger and, you know, I think, you know, Steffi just has 95 serves or Brenda Schultz and those guys, that is a big advantage. It is so much more comfort going in to hold -- knowing that you are going to hold your service games. Instead, for me, I have to fight from the backcourt each time every single point.

MONICA SELES: In what -- what similarities are in in Steffi than mine thing?

MONICA SELES: Yeah.

MONICA SELES: How do you mean empathy? What is empathy?

MONICA SELES: That is a tough one to answer. Can't compare the two position that I am in and that Steffi is in, so.....

MONICA SELES: No, York I think it was just funny that -- I don't know who was -- It was really unusual. First time I heard it in a Grand Slam tournament, but, you know, just try to stay focused after that, but I think the fans definitely speak out more than they used to before asking questions throwing comments, and --

MONICA SELES: I have been two times.

(Audience laughter).

MONICA SELES: Have to know the person. Have to meet them first if I like them or not - pretty important.

MONICA SELES: I got different views on it. It is a while. So, you know, there are -- different things heal differently. I don't know, I mean, but probably to come back to a level that I need to play, it will take a while and that is one of the reasons, you know, why I didn't want to do it for a while.

MONICA SELES: Well, I mean, they are all approved by the WTA and by the Olympic Committee because we do our drug testing, so it is nothing like serious. Some are just anti-inflammatory and some before the bigger matches I just take painkillers. They are simple, just pills, no injection or those forms which I will never do.

MONICA SELES: Gosh, one more time -- is there a rivalry between Steffi and me in terms of what?

MONICA SELES: Definite-- as I said before, the seedings, I think the worst that happened with the special ranking was to Arantxa, I mean, she really got the worst end of it. I told that to her and everybody. You know, I mean, Steffi clearly is No. 1. I mean, everybody can see that. She has won three Grand Slams. I mean, wow, whoever did that when I did that in '91, '92, I deserved to be, '93, whatever, in '94, Arantxa, 95, '96, Steffi, so there is -- I think who does well at Grand Slams, those tournaments in my mind at least who is the No. 1 player. And this year, I think clearly it has been Steffi.

MONICA SELES: Definitely. I think for women's tennis we need that. We need to have more Seles/Graf, Graf/Sanchez. Graf/Hingis matches to, you know, to go back, which before Martina/Chris would play more often and everything, but I really don't know how much the new Tour, what we are having proposed for next year that is going to happen, though.

MONICA SELES: Yeah, but that was the decision that I made really before the French that I didn't want to miss these Grand Slams this year and it might not have been -- it is hard to say if it was the best decision or not. And I sometimes when I have time I look back and I am thinking, gosh, why am I doing this, or it is a great decision and I don't know, but it is gone and I can't take that back, but have a little bit more to go for it.

MONICA SELES: Mostly, yeah. Mostly.

MONICA SELES: Well, I am hoping that -- I am going to get to Sidney, but it is going to be tight. I don't know, that is why -- as I said, who -- I don't know. I mean, everybody knows me, I am going to try if I have -- I am going to try to come back as quickly as I can. If they think there are other ways to try, I am going to try. I would have to play in Australia and I would definitely like to start the year off and have a much better year. This year was up and down. You can't expect all the time for myself so much with everything that I have been doing. There is a point where I won't have the consistency and I don't have that right now.

MONICA SELES: I don't know, I still feel that -- probably, yeah, I probably should have done that more, I think, yeah.

MONICA SELES: That is a tough one, but I think it is a lot of things. Obviously I am not training like I used to do and I think everybody can see that (laughs) I think, you know, I just hate to always think back to Hamburg, you know, all that stuff. I am here in '96, September, and I think for me what I told myself just going to have to be consistent even if I have long breaks, but still keep working hard on other things; just because you can't play tennis you don't have to do now nothing. There are a lot of other areas that I can improve upon and that is the one thing that I have learned this year and I wish maybe I would have done after Australian Open 'til before the French Open.

MONICA SELES: Oh, definitely. Definitely.

MONICA SELES: Only tournament that I am really disappointed was Wimbledon, I have to be honest there. The French I didn't expect anything because I knew the amounts that I didn't play and how I went into it would be Russian Roulette. But Wimbledon, definitely, because I felt I had a good draw and the way that I played few matches there, that I wasn't happy. That was -- really would be a disappointment to me this year. The Open and everything else is fine. But Wimbledon will not be a happy memory this year.

MONICA SELES: Well, as I said, everybody knows my views on it. I really don't even think the men should play out three out of five and most men -- well, see that is my view on it. I am happy either way -- does not matter to me what we play. But I am very happy with 2 out of 3 and I think it is just better for everybody not just for women, but more males too.