U.S. OPEN

August 26, 1996

Patricia Hy-Boulais

PATRICIA HY-BOULAIS: It's weird because I was practicing really well the last week coming into here, but Gaby is a player of her own. There's no one out there that can quite imitate her play. When I found the draw -- not the draw, but the schedule, that it was a night match, I haven't had great results with the lights, and I'm not comfortable, but it's both sides. I didn't feel like I played well tonight. Gaby was playing her game, moving me around. She did exactly what I thought she would do. It was up to me basically to do something. I tried. I was attacking. I was playing a lot more offensive out there. That has been my game since Wimbledon. It's been working really well. Just tonight was a little short.

PATRICIA HY-BOULAIS: She hits these loopies that goes over your head. I'm not very tall out there. For my height, it's even more difficult. I played with a few players, and they hit topspins. I practice with Amanda Coetzer, who hits a lot of topspin, but her ball doesn't kick that high. For a one-hander, when you have to deal with that, with my height, it's a little more difficult. Therefore I knew I had to do something different. I think I had the right strategy, but it was just a matter of making it when I had it. I missed a lot of it when I was at the net, like overheads and easy volleys. Might or might not make a difference, but certainly would have helped my confidence if I made them.

PATRICIA HY-BOULAIS: I don't know if she started off -- her first time back I think was at the Canadian Open.

PATRICIA HY-BOULAIS: Maybe a few more matches, she's back. But her game style is a very safe game style; she doesn't take a lot of chances. She's out there basically defending. She's a goal defender out there, she's a goal keeper. That's the way she is out there. Whereas I think if you have a long layoff, somebody like an aggressive player who are the shotmakers, when you come back you've got to be at this point, top form, otherwise you miss the court.

PATRICIA HY-BOULAIS: Yeah, because of the timing. A player like Gaby, you have a server over the net and so forth you can play with.

PATRICIA HY-BOULAIS: I think everybody's beatable. The women's level is so high now, that you get upsets out early, in the early rounds. At Wimbledon Monica lost in the second round, so forth. You know, Gaby is still a top player, no doubt about that. It's up to her own desire where she wants to be, if she wants to go back to the top five.

PATRICIA HY-BOULAIS: I knew that was coming (laughter). Yeah, I am. Next year might be it. I've been around a long time, since junior. Dispatcher, even transportation know me, practice court people know me. I've been here since I was 15 years old.

PATRICIA HY-BOULAIS: Yes. Tennis is my life. I wish it could go on forever, but one day. Right now I'm still enjoying it. Days like today isn't one of those enjoyable moments.

PATRICIA HY-BOULAIS: You can ask me when that time comes. Right now -- for a while I did consider packing it in and doing something else. You know what, tennis is so long, this is the best I'm doing, the best year I've ever had. I don't know if I'd go into another field. I don't even know if I'd be as good. While I have it, I'm going to enjoy it.