|
 Anna
beat Patty Schnyder 6-4 6-1
Q. Not so good early on, but then it all changed very quickly.
Anything you can put your finger on that turned it around for
you?
ANNA CHAKVETADZE: Yes, I started very slow today. But you have
to get used to Patty's game because she play with so much spin.
Ball is bouncing so high here. Vodafone is a little bit
different court because I played outside courts all my matches.
I just had to get used to it, then I found my rhythm and played
better.
Q. Did you step more inside the court? Is that what you did?
ANNA CHAKVETADZE: Yeah, I just started play more aggressive.
Q. So you were pretty composed out there the whole time. How
does it feel to be in the quarterfinals?
ANNA CHAKVETADZE: Well, I'm happy to be in quarterfinals, for
sure. I didn't expect that when I came here because usually I
play very bad in Australia (smiling). I'm happy to be in
quarterfinals.
Q. Mentally were you nervous at all going into the match
knowing you were playing a veteran player?
ANNA CHAKVETADZE: Well, I just try go to the court, just to win.
I'm not thinking about who is my opponent.
Before the match, of course, I'm thinking. But during the match,
I just thinking about how to beat her, and which level.
Q. You might have Sharapova in the next round. You played her
twice. Didn't get the chance to play her in Moscow. You almost
beat her in 2005.
ANNA CHAKVETADZE: Yeah, almost. But I lost. She have to beat
Zvonareva first. I think it will be very difficult match today.
Zvonareva is playing pretty good here. I mean, they both are
tough, so we'll see how it goes.
Q. Can you talk about if you have to play either one, what
you have to do against each other.
ANNA CHAKVETADZE: They both play pretty similar. They hit very
flat, good serve. Better backhand, I think. Well, I played
against Vera on grass and I lost very close match. I don't know.
They both very tough opponents. I have to be ready.
Q. Do you feel you're a much better player now than you were
when you lost to Maria the last time you played her?
ANNA CHAKVETADZE: Yes, I think so because now I have more
confidence and I know how should I play. I mean, if I will play
-- if I use my game plan, you know, right, then I can win I
think.
Q. Your anticipation seems to be a strength. Is this a
natural gift, something you're conscious of that you work on?
ANNA CHAKVETADZE: Yeah, I'm trying to work than it. Sometimes it
really happen, but sometimes I have bad days and I just can't
play.
Q. Bad days, you mean you guess the wrong way to go?
ANNA CHAKVETADZE: What?
Q. You guess the wrong way. You seemed today to guess the
right way every time.
ANNA CHAKVETADZE: I'm just trying to watch her racquet, where
she want to hit.
Q. I think there are 27 Russian women and girls here
competing. It's easy for the media to think of them as a group.
Do you look upon the other Russian girls as friends or rivals?
ANNA CHAKVETADZE: Of course friends because we spend so much
time on the tour. You can't be friends with everyone because
it's different personalities, all the players. But most of them
are very nice. I'm friends with them.
Q. Is it important for you to beat them as rivals and to sort
of work your way up, get a profile for yourself?
ANNA CHAKVETADZE: I'm not thinking to beat them. I just want to,
you know, play one more match and get one more match. I'm not
thinking about that she's from my home country.
Of course, it's mentally a little bit different because we know
each other better. But I'm not thinking like, Okay, she's
Russian, I have to beat her.
Q. Patty didn't fight very much today. Have you been
surprised by her behavior?
ANNA CHAKVETADZE: Yes, I actually was surprised. But I was
trying to play concentrate second set because I knew that she's
a fighter.
If she win like two easy points, she can start to fight. I think
I served pretty well. That helped me a lot, especially in the
second set.
Q. You're on a real winning streak at the moment. Can you
ever remember being as confident going into matches as you are
now?
ANNA CHAKVETADZE: No.
Q. That's a real noticeable thing to you, very important?
ANNA CHAKVETADZE: Uh-huh. I won like 20 matches I think, 19 or
something. So, yes, I get more confidence of course. But it's
also depends against who are you playing. I mean, I think here I
have pretty good draw, especially first two rounds. It can be
tricky when you play like first round.
Maybe she's like Mirza or Chinese, maybe she's not seeded, but
she's good player. And here I think draw was good for me.
Q. So you're not giving yourself a lot of credit?
ANNA CHAKVETADZE: No, not really (smiling).
Q. Are you pretty hard on yourself?
ANNA CHAKVETADZE: Yes, I am.
Q. Is that good or is that bad?
ANNA CHAKVETADZE: Well, I don't know. You tell me if it's good
or bad. I don't know. I mean, that's how I'm thinking. I don't
know.
I don't want to talk, like some of the players, they like to
say, I will win a Grand Slam. I mean, all the players want to
win a Grand Slam. All the players, they want to win their match.
I don't know. I just play. We will see what's happen. |
