|
|||
|
|||
|
 |
|
|
FEDCUP FIRST ROUND: BELGIUM v USAApril 21, 2007Zina GarrisonSerena WilliamsDELRAY BEACH, FLORIDA THE MODERATOR: Questions. Q. Serena, nice finish there. At any time in this match did you feel any uncomfortableness at all with the groin? SERENA WILLIAMS: No, not with the groin at all. I'm really excited I don't have any pain with the groin. I was really nervous that I would have pain. Q. Purely preventive to have that? SERENA WILLIAMS: Purely preventive. I hate it. I wish I didn't have to tape it. It's very uncomfortable. I'd rather have it than reinjure it. Q. Can you speak a little bit to the challenge of concentrating through a match where you know you're that heavily favored. Is it harder than when you step out there with a top-ranked player? SERENA WILLIAMS: Yeah, it definitely is harder. I felt like I lost a little focus in the second set. I wasn't doing the things that I felt I could have done. But I knew if things were to get any tighter, I would come through. Q. Is there any kind of a mental trick that you can sort of play with yourself to get yourself up to where you need to be? SERENA WILLIAMS: Well, it's good to have someone on the court like Zina. In Fed Cup it helps to have someone on the court because they can get you back into it faster than a normal circumstance. I mean, usually I read notes in between games and stuff. Q. Are you excited about the prospect of potentially closing out the tie tomorrow? What did you take out of your sister's match against Flipkens today? SERENA WILLIAMS: I thought Flipkens played really well. I think she'll want to really try to come tomorrow and give it her all. I'm excited about the possibility of closing it out tomorrow. I think it's a great honor. I think I might have done it before. I look forward to doing it again. Q. Obviously it's always fun to win. Can you talk about the particular kick of 1-2 with your sister in this situation? SERENA WILLIAMS: Like I said, with Venus on the team, we're guaranteed two wins. If I can just win one match, pretty much have it in our pockets. Q. Zina, if Serena wins the next match tomorrow, the fourth match, would you substitute Vania King in the singles? CAPTAIN GARRISON: No. I think Venus needs practice and wants practice. She's looking forward to the summer. A lot of things that we talked about today on the court was just preparing her for matches when the summer hits, so... Q. Zina, did anything at all surprise you today? Did they play like you thought they would? What did each of you think of Vania King's singing today? CAPTAIN GARRISON: Well, no, it actually went exactly like I thought. I think Venus got off to a little slower start than I expected, but she came through. Serena got off to an excellent start. I'd like to see the stats in the first set. I mean, she hardly missed any balls in the first set. But when she had to be the champion that she is, she rose to the occasion. Vania, I held back a tear. She was my little sister, little baby. I thought the last couple of notes she hit were very touching. SERENA WILLIAMS: I thought she did amazing. I really think she should go for the career. She does great in tennis, obviously. I think she's a great player. But she could have a double career. I think she'd be really good. Q. Serena, your second serve has become such a serious weapon. Has it been a while since you've had this kind of confidence hitting your second serve? SERENA WILLIAMS: No. I think today I didn't serve well. I usually hit one to zero double-faults. Today I had about four, which is what I have in a tournament. I never hit double-faults. But I think my second serve was solid. I think I was really getting a lot of kick on the ball, power and pace. I've always had this thing where I go for my second serve. Q. The confidence to go for it, what about that? SERENA WILLIAMS: Well, I feel that if I'm serving, I'm going to win. I've never lost that confidence. I've never felt when I'm not serving I'm not going to win. It's okay, I'm up a break, this is the match. Q. After this meeting is the clay court season in Europe. Are you a little bit afraid for the clay because of your injury? Is it a priority for you? SERENA WILLIAMS: Is what a priority? The clay? Q. The clay. SERENA WILLIAMS: The clay is my priority right now. Obviously I want to do well on the clay. Obviously I would love to win the French Open again. That would be nice, amazing. Q. Can it have an effect on your injury because you had the injury in Charleston on clay? SERENA WILLIAMS: Like I said, it's doing well. I'm really happy that I have no pain. I was nervous. I thought I would have some. Knock on wood, I haven't had any. Q. Zina, are your thoughts already for the semis where most likely you will meet Russia which will be a much tougher match-up? CAPTAIN GARRISON: No. I'm still a competitor by heart. I realize that you have to go out there and you have to finish it. So it would be a better question to ask me that tomorrow. I know that each one of the girls that's on the team, they understand that you got to go ahead and finish it and then we'll worry about the next round. Q. Serena, playing for your country is very special. You hadn't done it in a while. Did you miss it? What was the feeling like? Was it like the first time you played Fed Cup? SERENA WILLIAMS: It didn't seem that long ago. I think I missed last year. I played the year before. I was on the team the year before. I definitely missed it. It's strange hearing 'Game USA' instead of 'Game Williams'. It's different, and I like it. Q. The absence of the electronic line calling system here, would you prefer to have it in this tournament? SERENA WILLIAMS: I like the challenge. I don't know if that's what you're referring to. I like the challenge. But whatever. I played 20 something years without challenges. CAPTAIN GARRISON: I think it would be great to bring it in especially since I feel that Serena was a big part of making all of that a part of it anyway. It would be nice to bring it back. The US Open was I think the first place that actually really brought it in. As from a person that's watching on television sometimes I think it's unbelievable. It's nice to see when they have that challenge if they're going to use it, if they're not going to use it. It's good. Q. There were a striking number of African American fans in the stands today. Could you both comment on that, what it means to you. CAPTAIN GARRISON: I brought about 25 from D.C. No, I mean, it's great. A lot of times they don't really have the opportunity sometimes to come out. I think this is a great opportunity since it's right here in Venus and Serena's backyard. I'm sure you guys have a lot of friends that you know and people come out. It's been really good. Q. Zina, we saw with the men that Winston-Salem became a special place for them, they performed well there. Are you beginning to feel the same way about Delray Beach? CAPTAIN GARRISON: Oh, no, the city has been great to us. It's been amazing. The center is nice. I'm sure, like Venus and Serena, even Lisa, Lisa played for Florida. I mean, it's nice to kind of be back home. They can run home if they want. If they left something, a cute pair of shoes, it's good. End of FastScripts |
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
About ASAP Sports •
FastScripts Archive •
Recent Interviews •
Captioning •
Upcoming Events •
Contact Us
FastScripts | Events Covered | Our Clients | Other Services | ASAP in the News | Site Map | Job Opportunities | Links |
|
ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297
|