SONY ERICSSON OPEN
Date: 2008-03-30

SONY ERICSSON OPEN

March 30, 2008

Ana Ivanovic
MIAMI, FLORIDA
The Moderator Questions, please.

Question You had never played Lindsay before. Was that a factor in what happened today? Did she do things that surprised you?
Ana Ivanovic: It was a little bit. Obviously, first time you play against someone you try to, you know, get to know them and try to get rhythm in the beginning.
But against her you just don't get it. She was playing extremely well. She had always the first hit on her ball. It was kind of disappointing for me.
I had chances in the beginning and didn't use them. Just my intensity wasn't up there today. When you play against such a champion, you need to be on the ball for each point.

Question Her service returns are so good. Does that affect you? Make you serve a little closer to the line? Take more risks?
Ana Ivanovic: It does. I must say I haven't played against many players who can return so well and so deep, so she puts a lot of pressure on my serve. So then I try to go for a little bit more. Try to put more first serves in. Try to roll it a little bit more so I have to take off the speed.
That's, obviously, what she wants and I don't want. But it was the case today. Yeah, she just played better.

Question What about your fatigue after Indian Wells? Is that still a factor?
Ana Ivanovic: Well, honestly, it's a little bit hard, you know, to start from the first round and bring the intensity back. I started with my intensity a little bit today. But, you know, she's just a great player. Today on the court she was the better one. You know, she deserved to win.
My service wasn't going so well, and I had quite a few unforced errors. Yeah, like I said, she was the better player today, and I hope we get a chance to play again.

Question Does it give you an appreciation of how difficult it is for the really tennis players like Federer, say, to do it back-to-back, given your experience in the last week?
Ana Ivanovic: It is. It is. I start admiring them more and more for that. Because, obviously, it's not easy, and they most of the time do it week after week.
It's also important to make a smart scheduling and don't play too many tournaments in a row, because you just can't keep the level through many weeks. So that's something, you know, I'm experiencing for one of the first times. Definitely I learn from this, and it was a good achievement still.
You know, I was pretty happy with last week. And this week, like I said, she was the better player today.

Question When you say you'll learn, you'll take a couple more days off or something like that?
Ana Ivanovic: Well, obviously, it was hard. Because this is a big tournament, and we had also lot of commitments to do. A lot of things off the court, and that it takes energy sometimes.
So just trying to balance everything, and still, you know, to get good practice in. Conditions are a lot different. Yeah, but, it's just we have to, as professional athletes, try to adjust the best we can from week after week.

Question You say you're still learning, but yet you're already No. 2 in the world. What do you feel it says about your potential that you're still learning, but you're already ranked so high?
Ana Ivanovic: That's something that I'm really happy, because I have feeling that I can learn still so many new things. Every day, you know, I feel I'm learning something new. That gives me great motivation.
Because like you said, I already achieved a lot, but still I feel there is room for improvement. And that gives me a lot of satisfaction and motivation, and that's everything you want to have.

Question So there is nothing but to look forward to the clay season now. Do you have to do some particular off-court work to strengthen your body for the clay season before you go out there and start playing?
Ana Ivanovic: Obviously, on the clay the matches are a little bit longer, so, you know, you've got to match more longer rallies. But my fitness coach has done a great job. I believe in his work and what he does with my fitness, so I have to keep working hard.
I have a big clay court season coming up, and I'm looking forward to it. But now I'll have some time off to rest and to recover and start working again.

Question What will be your clay court schedule?
Ana Ivanovic: The first tournament is Berlin. Obviously, I have Fed Cup at the end of April, and then the first tournament will be Berlin, Rome, and then French Open.

Question How about the ankle? It's still tight, isn't it?
Ana Ivanovic: It's just prevention. I haven't had any pain for a few weeks now, so I was really happy to be recovered so fast.

Question About the clay court season, last year you obviously made your big breakthrough on the clay court season, but yet you're typically a power player. Did it surprise you that you made kind of your big break on clay?
Ana Ivanovic: What I felt was the big break, I managed to be very patient, which took some time. But playing on clay, obviously, you have to maybe win points more than once, you know, during the rallies. So that's something I have to learn from last year to keep it going this year. Just, yeah, be patient, and still work hard for each point.

Question It's been quite a similar story with you and Novak in the last ten days at Indian Wells. Then quite a few commitments and having to back it up here. Have you talked at all about it? Did you talk to each other following Indian Wells or in the week leading up to this?
Ana Ivanovic: No, no, we haven't had chance to talk about it. We're both very busy. But I understand also for him, it was, obviously very disappointing to lose. You know, he's defending champion. But just he's also very young, and he's also learning.
You have to come back here and perform well and play, you know, really good tennis from the first chance. And opponents are very motivated to beat you and to perform better because they have nothing to lose, and they just play some great tennis.
Obviously, it's tougher for the top players. But, hey, that's why they are the top players.

Question For Dutch tennis magazine, what can you tell me about your partnership with Sven Groenefeld, because you're always so positive about him?
Ana Ivanovic: Yeah, he's helped me a lot. He gave me great support, and I'm so lucky and happy to have him on my side and to be working with him. Because since last year when I started spending more time with him on the court, I felt I improved a lot. He's very experienced, and he gave me a lot of advices.
He's been with the players before that won a Grand Slam and that won a big tournament, so that's definitely something I can learn from him. And I'm looking forward to see him again to work.

Question But isn't it strange for you that maybe Sven is also involved with other players? He's not just coaching you, but he's coaching maybe your competitors in a way, you know?
Ana Ivanovic: It is. It's obviously hard. But you have to have trust. I definitely have good communication with him and I trust him a lot, and it's not easy, as you said. It's not easy when I have to play another adidas player, because he obviously cannot advise me how to beat them. He can't sit in the box or he can't be there to support me, although we practice before.
So it is a little bit tough, you know, especially, for example, last year when I played against Justine in the final of French. It was such a big moment for me, and yet he couldn't be there.
It's tough, but that's the way it has to be. We just have to get the positives.

Question Did you talk with Sven after the final at Roland Garros about what happened?
Ana Ivanovic: Yeah. I mean, we spoke a lot. It was my nerves. You know, I couldn't really serve. We went over the match, we spoke about it, and I learned.

Question But you don't feel that maybe you need like someone with you all the time? Someone who can coach you in every match? Because I can imagine, it's like you said, it's weird that sometimes you face an adidas player and you can't have coaching.
Ana Ivanovic: It is. From time to time it would be nice to have him there all the time to talk, to have someone. But then on the other hand, in the past I had quite not pleasant experience with full-time coaches. They just try to take too much control over all aspects of your life. It became too hard for both of us.
You know, with Sven, I feel we are working great, we have great communication, and we trust each other. But still we have a lot of time apart from each other, so we can appreciate the time we are working together.

Question I have a question about Lindsay. Watching her, she took time out to start a family. All the time it takes to come back and playing well and what she did today. Do you kind of look at her and say, As a woman, I can have that kind of balance in my life? I can have children. I can still be a tennis champion.
Ana Ivanovic: Obviously, yes. You know, it's quite individual. So it just shows her passion for tennis and her love for tennis, so it's great to see that. But, you know, like I said, it's very individual. You have to try to find what works best for you. You know, if you can find balance between your private life and tennis, you know.
You have to find some kind of balance, because if you are just into tennis, you know, what's happening here, sometimes it gets too much. You also have to have some time away from it and enjoy.

Question You're a very gracious loser as well as being a gracious winner.
Ana Ivanovic: Thank you.

Question Have you always been that way when you were younger, or was it harder for you to come after a match and smile?
Ana Ivanovic: Yeah, I used to cry a lot. (Laughing) I did. You know, when I was younger I was taking it really hard. But, you know, through the time you realize that losing is part of your career and part of everyone's career. So you just have to make sure that you don't make losses your defeats.

Question If you didn't know that Lindsay was ranked number 33 coming into this match, what would you have thought her ranking would be after this match?
Ana Ivanovic: Excuse me, can you repeat the question?

Question If you didn't know Lindsay was ranked 33 based on her performance today, what would you have guessed her ranking would be?
Ana Ivanovic: She played like a top 10 player easily today. She won Grand Slams before, and she was the No. 1 player. So she has the game. Today she played very well. So, you know, I'm glad to see her back, and I hope she can do well.

Question How does the weight of her shot compare to the real big hitters at the moment?
Ana Ivanovic: It's different. Because these days there are so many girls that are hitting really powerful, and they try to dominate the game. But with her it was different.
You know, she was playing also very deep, which other girls usually don't play as deep. So after the serve I felt straightaway under pressure. It was hard for me to direct the ball and control the court. That is something that she does really well.
So, yeah, I know these things I have to learn and to improve and practice on it, because in the future, maybe I'll have a chance to play against her again.