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Q. You seemed to start off a little bit
slow. Were you a little tentative out there
or did it take you a while to find your groove?
AMELIE MAURESMO: Yeah, I think it took
me a little time to, you know, find my rhythm.
Playing at night, it's not the same, quite
the same. Just took me a few games to get
in that match. But then I think I played good
tennis.
Q. You think you benefitted from just
being patient? You had a lot of long rallies
there.
AMELIE MAURESMO: Yeah, I think so. Some
very long points. Try to stay in the rhythm
in the match, try to put the ball back in
longer than her.
Q. How would you compare this match
to when you played Tara at the French Open?
AMELIE MAURESMO: You know, it's not the
same for me. You know, the pressure is not
the same also. I think I was maybe less --
I felt less tension today than I did at the
French Open. But both matches I think I played
pretty good tennis, today also. You know,
good.
Q. Were you at all surprised, did
you feel that she hit the ball with a little
more pace than you figured or was it just
about what you expected?
AMELIE MAURESMO: No, it's what I expected.
I know her. I know how she plays. I know how
she hits the ball. She can hit it very hard.
But we know each other for a few years now,
so I knew how she plays, what I have to do
to beat her. I think it happened the way I
wanted.
Q. I guess unless somebody was following
the Juniors for the last couple of years,
they maybe haven't heard of you. Is it a surprise
to you to have risen so quickly through the
rankings and to have cracked the Top 10, to
be the 15th seed here?
AMELIE MAURESMO: Well, you know, it was
a little bit of a surprise to do what I did
at the Australian Open. After that, I think
I confirmed it very well in the Paris Open,
and then in Rome when I reached the Top 10.
You know, I think I can play this level very,
very often now. That's what I'm trying to
do, even though I'm coming back from a long
rest.
Q. Do you think maybe ten years ago
an openly gay player would not have been able
to sort of keep their endorsements and things
like that? Do you think you've benefitted
a little bit from the gradual acceptance now,
even though there's probably still a long
way to go.
AMELIE MAURESMO: Yeah, I'm sure it wasn't
the same like a few years ago, like Martina
Navratilova said. I think people are growing
in their mind. I'm coming today, so I don't
know what it would have been a few years earlier.
I think, of course, I benefit from what they
did.
Q. What is your reaction to the speed
of the surface, of the court? Do you like
it or do you think it's a little too fast?
AMELIE MAURESMO: No, I like it. It's
true, it's very fast, very fast hard court.
I think it's okay for my game.
Q. On your time off, was it mostly
for an injury or was it mental rest, as well?
Was it a combination of both?
AMELIE MAURESMO: Sorry?
Q. Your time off, rest, was that mostly
a mental rest or physical rest?
AMELIE MAURESMO: Injury. I twist my ankle,
so I had to rest for a long time. It was a
bit of both. It was good.
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