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Rogers AT&T Cup - Press Conferences


   August 14, 2003

   JELENA DOKIC vs. VERA ZVONAREVA 
   SCORE / RÉSULTAT: 3-6, 2-6


   Interview With/Entrevue Avec: 

   JELENA DOKIC

   Tour Official: Questions for Jelena, please.

   Reporter: Jelena, obviously that wasn't the way you 
   wanted that to end. Could you tell us a little bit about 
   how you felt on court today and the match?

   Jelena Dokic: She played well. I couldn't break her at 
   the beginning. There was ?? it was a little difficult, 
   but I think when I had 3?2 and 30?love on my serve in 
   the first set, with three double faults, I think that 
   really got me down. And I lost that game and I should 
   have held that game, but I think that was the key to 
   that. But just generally I didn't play so well. She kept 
   me back, she kept on hitting the ball well and I 
   couldn't do very much.

   Reporter: Was it more her that put your game out of 
   place, or was it you? Were you not focused?

   Jelena Dokic: A little bit of both. She's difficult to 
   play. So, you know, if I wasn't, you know, going to be 
   100 per cent and hit very well, I wasn't going to beat 
   her. And she runs well, too. So she ?? she, I think she 
   hit two second serves in the whole match. It was 
   impossible for me to break her and get some of her 
   serves back and that was difficult.

   Reporter: Jelena, what do you take from this experience 
   in Toronto, anything positive, that you want to sort of 
   carry on to the next time you play?

   Jelena Dokic: I played a good first match. I mean, my 
   game's getting better. The first six months, I didn't 
   even play close to this. I really didn't play well at 
   all. So I've been playing better. I think it's still 
   mentally the confidence side. So until I get my 
   confidence back completely, it will difficult to win 
   matches. But I've had a good first match. I mean, I 
   didn't play well today, but you know, I have to go on.

   Reporter: You said earlier in the week that confidence 
   was really fragile for you this season, it didn't take 
   much for it to go up or to go down. I guess you got a 
   little in the first match. How much does this affect 
   your confidence going forward?

   Jelena Dokic: It's not going to get any worse. I think I 
   played some matches this summer. So I feel better. I 
   feel like I'm playing better than the first six months. 
   Like I said, I have to go on to try to get better. 
   Whether it comes now, later in the year, or next year, 
   we'll have to see. I have been working hard and just 
   playing and trying to win as many matches as I can to 
   get my confidence up.

   Reporter: Could you tell us just a little bit about when 
   you were first felt you were starting to lose your 
   confidence? I know it was a while back, but what might 
   have caused that?

   Jelena Dokic: I don't know. I didn't start the year off 
   very well. So I lost some matches that I shouldn't have. 
   I mean, it happens. I've had a weak year and this is 
   normal. I don't think it's just confidence, it's my game 
   itself, that I haven't played well. Everything's come 
   together. I'm not going to get down. It's normal. If you 
   have a bad year, it happens.

   Reporter: At the start of the year, did you have the 
   same normal preparation in between, during Christmas 
   time and ?? 

   Jelena Dokic: Yeah, I do everything the same. I had a 
   little bit of a longer layoff. I mean, I was sick at the 
   beginning of the year. I had a few weeks rest to 
   prepare. But other than that, I did normal things. You 
   know, I did everything the same. I had a little bit of a 
   longer break and that was it. 

   Reporter: I know this is hard to talk about it, but I 
   don't think we can just avoid the subject that as a 
   tennis player you haven't just had a normal year. I 
   mean, most tennis players don't have their fathers 
   publicly saying that they're abandoning their daughters 
   in Sports Illustrated. How do you deal with that? Do you 
   have a sports psychologist that's helping you? Your 
   boyfriend has been very vocal in sort of speaking on 
   your behalf. Your father ?? it seems everyone is talking 
   but you about this subject.

   Jelena Dokic: Because I don't think this subject is 
   worth talking about. They can make all the comments that 
   they want, you know, it's not something that I want to 
   deal with. It's not worth dealing with. And, you know, I 
   don't think I would focus on what my dad says or what 
   someone else says and what comments they make. And I 
   would like to stick to the tennis. If someone wants to 
   talk about that, that's fine. But I'm not going to talk 
   about that. It is my private life. So I think everyone 
   should just stick to the tennis here and my private life 
   should stay out of it.

   Reporter: Jelena, what's your schedule like for the next 
   little while?

   Jelena Dokic: I go to New Haven next week, probably the 
   U.S. Open and then to go to Bali and Shanghai after 
   that. But I'll see how it goes, how I feel. I'm not 
   getting tired. I'm not playing too many matches, so I 
   feel fine. And probably will be good to get some more 
   until the year-end and to keep on playing. 

   Reporter: Jelena, do you consider that Zvonareva is one 
   of the most improved players since the beginning of the 
   season?

   Jelena Dokic: I think she's done well. I don't know 
   exactly who's new and who's not, exactly. But she's 
   played well. She's done well at the grand slams. She's 
   beaten Venus. And she's had very good results. She's 
   definitely one of the ones that's improved and, you 
   know, the ones to look out for. She plays very well and 
   she's improved a lot.

   Reporter: This confidence thing, is this, for you, just 
   a general situation or just into a match situation, like 
   facing tough situations?

   Jelena Dokic: Both, I think. I mean, I haven't had that 
   many matches or that many tough matches to deal with. 
   So, like I said, it's confidence. It's to win some 
   matches and get better. I think once you win a few, your 
   game starts to go up. So I mean, you just have to, like 
   I said, you have to go on. I mean, I'm not going to cry 
   about it all day, it happens. I've had a bad year and 
   that's all. I mean, I have to try not to get my ranking 
   get affected too much. I have to try to stay there. And, 
   you know, I hope to have quite a few tournaments at the 
   end of the year and I'll try really hard when I have the 
   time off before next year.

   Reporter: Is there a rank that you're trying to attain 
   that you would like to be a certain number?

   Jelena Dokic: I mean, being number 4 last year was a 
   little difficult for me, I try not to look at the 
   rankings. I would like to stay in the top 20. I mean, I 
   don't know what's going to happen to my ranking now, but 
   I don't have a lot to defend at the end of the year, 
   which is good for me. If I stay in the top 15, 20, it's 
   not a huge set back considering I had a bad year. So 
   that's the way that I look at it. And then, you know, I 
   hardly have anything to defend next year, so I can start 
   well and start again.

   Reporter: Jelena, you are having a bad year, but do you 
   still enjoy to be on the court playing singles and 
   doubles?

   Jelena Dokic: Yeah, for sure. I mean, even though I've 
   been losing a match or I win a match, I still like to be 
   out there. And it's difficult to travel so much and play 
   so much, but it is a great experience, something that I 
   enjoy doing. If I didn't like it or didn't enjoy it, I 
   wouldn't do it.

   Tour Official: Thank you very much. 


Copyright 2003 Tennis Canada. All Rights Reserved.

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Rogers AT&T Cup - Press Conferences


   August 14, 2003

   VERA ZVONAREVA vs. JELENA DOKIC 
   SCORE / RÉSULTAT: 6-3, 6-2


   Interview With/Entrevue Avec: 

   VERA ZVONAREVA

   Tour Official: Questions for Vera, please.

   Reporter: Vera, you must feel very, very confident about 
   today's performance.

   Vera Zvonareva: Yeah, I was feeling really, like, 
   confident on the courts today. And I wasn't really 
   confident during the first match, because I didn't play 
   for, I think two weeks before, but then I was, I think, 
   I played a good tennis second round and today.
   Reporter: How much of today do you feel was you and how 
   much was Dokic struggling a little bit?

   Vera Zvonareva: Sorry?

   Reporter: How much of today was you winning the match 
   and how much was her losing it a little bit?

   Vera Zvonareva: You know, when I played ?? I try to 
   play, I mean, deep and hard that it was tough for her 
   and she was missing. Because as soon as I hit a short 
   ball or soft ball she was just killing me. So she didn't 
   really miss, like, a lot of mistakes on short balls, but 
   maybe she was missing some of the deep balls, because 
   she wanted to hit the winner from there and I was moving 
   pretty well today. I was getting to the ball, so it was 
   tough for her.

   Reporter: She also seemed to be having trouble with her 
   serve and yours was very consistent. I mean, could you 
   see her confidence sort of breaking down as that match 
   went on?

   Vera Zvonareva: Yeah, I mean, I was serving really good 
   today, so it was tough for her to get the game on my 
   serve. And then, I think she was a little bit in a rush 
   because she knew that she has to keep her serve or she's 
   going to lose the set and match. So maybe she didn't 
   play her best tennis for ?? compared to the last year. 
   Maybe she lost a little bit of confidence, but as soon 
   as she works hard to win a couple matches, she will get 
   it back. You know, it just always happens and just you 
   have to try your best and I think she really improved 
   her tennis since maybe a couple of months ago and I 
   think she's getting that back. By the end of the year, I 
   don't know, maybe she will get back in top 10.

   Reporter: Yesterday we were talking and you said that a 
   lot of the Russian women hang out on the tour together.

   Vera Zvonareva: Yeah.

   Reporter: Like off the court. Is Dokic included in that 
   group?

   Vera Zvonareva: Actually, no, she's from Yugoslavia. So 
   we speak a different language. But, you know, no, it's 
   mainly the Russians getting together.

   Reporter: What's been happening the last two or three 
   weeks?

   Vera Zvonareva: Because I played Fed Cup and after this 
   I came back from Slovenia, actually fell down on my left 
   side of the Fed Cup, so I had problems with my left 
   elbow and I didn't play for maybe a week, 10 days, and 
   then I started to practice. So I missed San Diego and 
   L.A., so I came here.

   Reporter: It seems that it looked like a bit of an 
   upset, you defeating Dokic, but what was your mindset 
   going into the match? Did you know that you could win 
   and how do you feel you're playing right now? How's your 
   confidence?

   Vera Zvonareva: I'm playing pretty well now. And, you 
   know, when you go to the court and you think you're 
   going to lose, I don't think you could ever win a match. 
   So you just go to the court and want to win and try to 
   find a ways how you can do this on the court. And if it 
   doesn't go well, it's just keep trying and change 
   something. But if it goes well, just try to keep your 
   best tennis and save it, if you win, and save it for the 
   next match.

   Reporter: Did you have any expectations when you came to 
   Toronto? Did you look at getting into the semifinals, 
   quarterfinals? What were you expecting to do this week?

   Vera Zvonareva: You know, I don't really expect anything 
   like that when I go into the tournament. I just want to 
   play my best game. And then if I'm playing my good game, 
   then I can win, you know, a couple of matches, or if I'm 
   doing really well, then go farther. But never expect, 
   because everything can happen in tennis, it's a game. So 
   you just have to try and play your best tennis and if 
   you play good then results will come. 

   Reporter: There has been some debate over whether or not 
   it's a good idea ?? a lot of girls travel with their 
   families or one member of their family or two, 
   Hantuchova has her mom around with her and the Williams 
   sisters have their family. Do you feel that you're 
   missing out?

   Vera Zvonareva: Actually, my mother she never travelled 
   with me, even when I was a child, like 9 or 10 years 
   old. So she was a sportsman, too, she played field 
   hockey, so she knows how it is. And I was travelling 
   with my coach. So it feels like ?? I don't know, I feel 
   fine with my coach and I don't want to change, actually, 
   anything. But maybe sometimes maybe she will come to a 
   couple tournaments, because now, this year, I started to 
   play much more tournaments, so I'm missing home more.

   Tour Official: Thank you very much. 


Copyright 2003 Tennis Canada. All Rights Reserved.

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