03 settembre 2001
Capriati D Schett 6-3, 6-3
Q. Take me back to the first game. It looked like it went to six deuces, four
breakpoints, a long game. How important was that? Did you feel it was going
to be a longer day than it turned out to be after that first game?
JENNIFER CAPRIATI: Yeah. I thought that was kind of how the match was going
to go, it was going to be tough like that. I was just hoping it wasn't going
to be that tough every game. But I think we were just both feeling it out.
You know, it's good to get the first game especially, you know, to hold
serve. But it's not real important I think in the women's game like it is in
the men's game. You know, I think we were just, first match, trying to get
warmed up out there.
Q. You fought off a lot of breakpoints in this match in the first set. As
you develop as a professional, how do you condition yourself to just play
your game instead of getting tentative in a tight point?
JENNIFER CAPRIATI: It's almost like I play better on those points, you know.
Maybe I just handle the pressure well or like the pressure. You know, it
makes me play better. It's just playing. For as long as I've been playing,
you just get used to it. You automatically condition yourself. You try not
to think of, you know, that being breakpoint or whatever, set point. You
just try to think of it as just any other point that you would just play.
Q. Do you find with the game on the line with the next point, you're
focusing better on that point, mind doesn't wander anyplace?
JENNIFER CAPRIATI: I think that probably has a lot to do with it.
Q. Although you did play well on the big points, closing it out you showed a
little bit of jitters. You had two match points, you double-faulted. What
was going through your mind at that point? Were you overanxious?
JENNIFER CAPRIATI: Maybe a little overanxious. But, you know, the crowd was
just quiet the whole match, and then all of a sudden they start like
clapping there. You know, just made me think about it a little bit. So maybe,
yeah, I did get a little nervous there. You know, I was on the tougher side,
too, the sunny side. You know, it was okay that I lost the serve there. Just
try to put it behind me and get the next one.
Q.
If it's Mauresmo in the next match, it will be the second time you play her.
Although it's a different surface from Germany, you're very good on clay as
well as hard court. What did she do in that final that gave you trouble?
JENNIFER CAPRIATI: I think she just played unbelievable that match.
Especially in the third set, she didn't make any errors at all. She was just
making incredible shots. It wasn't that I played badly at all. There's
nothing you can do if someone's going to play like that. They just deserve
the win. You know, this time I'll be ready for her to play so well, because
I know she's definitely capable of it.
Q. How good is her backhand?
JENNIFER CAPRIATI: It's pretty good. I mean, I think she is more consistent.
I think she makes more winners on the forehand side.
Q. Were you watching last night? Are you sometimes trying to go to bed, you
have a match the next day, you think, "What do I do?"
JENNIFER CAPRIATI: I stayed up till the fourth set. I just turned off the
TV. I was just tired.
Q. You say you play better in the pressure situations. Take us back to the
third set at the French, Kim Clijsters. Talk about how important that was
for your year. Also talk a little bit about Kim, what you saw from her that day.
JENNIFER CAPRIATI: Well, I think for the moment, it was the finals, you know,
her first finals. She was playing pretty loose. She was just really going
for it. You know, I don't think that day I was playing my best tennis. I was
just fighting out there. Just kind of retrieving a lot. You know, it was
kind of an up-and-down match. You know, I look back. It's like the third
set, you know, I was two points away from losing it a couple times. It's
like, "How did I just pull it out?" It was just a matter of staying in there
and fighting for each point. That's really what happened. I think I just,
you know, outlasted her in that.
Q. Have you hit your stride yet in this tournament or are you not playing quite
the way you want to play yet?
JENNIFER CAPRIATI: No, I think I'm playing pretty well. You know, for the
opponents that I've played, I've maintained an even balance of everything,
just moving well, being consistent. You know, we'll see now as the second
week comes, playing the top players, the higher-ranked players. You know,
hopefully my level -- I think there's just a lot of tennis waiting to come
out still.
Q. You feel the level you showed at Roland Garros many times, and Australia,
could be just around the corner?
JENNIFER CAPRIATI: Yeah, I think it's there right now. I feel pretty
confident. I feel like I'm getting better and peaking as each match goes on.
Q. I notice that today you went to the net a few times to put the pressure
on. Will we see that part of your game as the stakes get higher? Will you be
more aggressive, coming to the net?
JENNIFER CAPRIATI: Definitely I'm not afraid to do that. Why not? I mean, I
feel pretty comfortable out there. I've been playing some good doubles this
week. I mean, it's been working for me. It worked for me the last singles
match. You know, I feel pretty confident up there.
Q. Playing doubles with Martina, has that helped you this week with
confidence at the net?
JENNIFER CAPRIATI: Yeah, I think definitely. You know, she's one of the best
doubles players in the world, so I'm learning a lot from that, from playing
with her. Yeah, it's just making me feel more comfortable at the net.
Q. Getting back to the first game, you won it, yet you kind of walked off
seeming like you were a little frustrated. What was happening there?
JENNIFER CAPRIATI: Maybe because it was just a struggle and I just didn't
put like one first serve in, you know (laughter).
Q. Even though this is a different site, when you see the attention you're
getting, does it bring back the period before when you were 15, 16, you were
a big star? Do you sort of feel the same sort of thing, with in between
having a quiet time, or is it totally different?
JENNIFER CAPRIATI: I think it's totally different, even more so now, but in
a different way. You know, I'm ranked No. 2, seeded No. 2. I mean, they give
that attention to the top-ranked players. You know, it's kind of in a
different way. Before, I mean, I just wasn't that high ranked. I had good
results, but not like the results I have coming into it this year. I think
it's definitely higher profile now.
Q. Does the music during the changeovers distract you? I notice you were
watching the score board a couple times.
JENNIFER CAPRIATI: No.
Q. Were you interested?
JENNIFER CAPRIATI: Well, I mean, it's just pretty big. It's hard not to look
at it (smiling).
Q. As you move on in the tournament, will you change your preparation as the
stakes get higher between matches? Will you get more rest or change your
routine in any way?
JENNIFER CAPRIATI: No, no. Keep doing what I've been doing.
Q. Can you describe what it feels like to be on the zone when you're on the
court?
JENNIFER CAPRIATI: In the zone?
Q. In the zone.
JENNIFER CAPRIATI: It's pretty hard to explain. I mean, it's making, I mean,
shots that you don't even know that you're going to make, and you just make.
They just go in. It's like nothing can go wrong. I mean, it's a pretty cool
feeling. It's like a rush. You know, it's hard to stay in that zone
completely. But, you know, just sometimes, it's like (inaudible), like when
somebody else is doing it, too. It's like, "Okay, it's not going to last
forever."
Q. Can you feel it when you're starting to go out of it or do you want to
stay in the euphoria of the moment?
JENNIFER CAPRIATI: You know, a couple things, you can start getting
distracted, something can happen, a bad line call or something like that can
sort of like, you know, mess up the rhythm.
Q. And when would you say was the last time you were in that place on court?
JENNIFER CAPRIATI: I think I hit some zone shots today, you know (laughter).
Q. What about Serena at Wimbledon?
JENNIFER CAPRIATI: There was a couple patches there, zone shots.
Q. Have you ever been in that zone, thought, "I can turn up the volume a
little bit," and you lose it just like that?
JENNIFER CAPRIATI: Sometimes. That can happen sometimes. But really, I mean,
you can even feel it like when you start off from the first point. You can
keep it till the end of the match. Especially if the other player's in the
zone, too, it's like you're both feeding off each other.
Q. Have you ever walked on court and said to yourself, "I know I'm in the
zone today"?
JENNIFER CAPRIATI: Sometimes. Sometimes you do feel that way. I mean, it's
kind of a hard feeling to explain. Yeah, I mean, you look at like some other
players like Pete or Rafter. I mean, you know, you can tell right away when
they're in a zone, like from the first ball. Yeah, the way they walk onto
the court.
Q. Ten years since you've been to the quarterfinals. Do you have a sense of
that? How does it feel to be back going into the second week now?
JENNIFER CAPRIATI: Yeah, I'm pretty happy about it. It's been a while since
I made it past the fourth round here at The Open especially. You know, I'm
happy about it. I'm just really eager to get farther, you know, just try to
really do well here.
Q. Do you think in general you do better against players who are going to
give you a lot of pace like Mauresmo or against a cagey veteran like Tauziat,
mixing up speed, spins, slices?
JENNIFER CAPRIATI: I mean, it's different because, well, Tauziat, I've
played her so many times. I mean, I know her game, but you get no rhythm
against her. In another way, you know, you get more of a target because, you
know, she's coming to net. Just pick your shots, you just try to hit them.
It's easier, sometimes points are short. Mauresmo, it's like baseline
rallies. You've got to be more consistent. It's more work. But then I get
more rhythm. I mean, both are tough, equally tough.
Q. Who are you cheering for?
JENNIFER CAPRIATI: I mean, it doesn't matter to me. Whoever.
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