Dominique defeated Arantxa Sanchez Vicario in 1-6 6-4 8-6 18th of January 1997
| Dominique defeated Arantxa Sanchez Vicario in 1-6 6-4 8-6 18th of January 1997 |
| Dominique defeated Chanda Rubin ... of January 1997
|
Q: Is that your biggest win?
A: Yes.
Q: How does it feel?
A: I don't realise at the moment, what I just did. Probably in a few
hours, and I am very happy.
Q: At the end of the first set you
would have been not expecting that at all?
A: I was very nervous in the first set, making a lot of unforced errors.
I was just trying to play my game, going for the winner. At the end of the second set I
was feeling very good. I was just trying to play hard and long and I made a lot of winners
and I think it was very close at the end of the second set but finally I went through.
Q: What was the injury problem
before the final game?
A: Sorry?
Q: What was the injury problem before the final game?
A: The final game. I had since already one week a problem with my arm. I
played a lot of matches last week, I played in Hobart, and I won my single and I played
the final in doubles so I had a lot of matches before I arrived here, so I just keep
playing, but I feel the ball are very heavy and with the wind sometimes it is bothering me
so I just needed to have stretch and a little bit of massage before I was going to serve
for the match.
Q: Would you describe that as
tennis elbow or tendonitis?
A: No, it is nothing about tendonitis, it is just something with the
muscle. It is very tight and because I play hard, my game of course doesn't really help me
for my shot and it is nothing really bad, actually, just sore and very tender.
Q: You shook it when you hit a
volley in the last game?
A: Probably I was holding my racquet too tight. Just feeling my arms,
everything was just going up and very painful, but I just hold the racquet.
Q: Somebody threw a hat on the
court at the end?
A: My husband. He thought I was going to pick the hat back but I was just
too excited so I didn't go.
Q: What is his name?
A: Bart, B-a-r-t.
Q: Had you given yourself a big
chance going into the match, a big chance of winning before the match?
A: I was playing well last week so I had a lot of confidence, but when I
started the match I was nervous, of course. For me it was the first experience on the
Grand Slam stadium and I knew that the way I was playing that I could have a chance and I
just have to think that I could go just for a winner and before the match actually I slept
well and I not too nervous and during the match I was feeling better and better, more
confidence, and it helped me a lot during the match, especially at the end.
Q: At two games to five in the last
set, did you consciously decide to have a big go then?
A: All the games were very close during the third set and I was a little
bit unlucky with my shot and I think at 5/2 I just continued playing and going for every
ball. I think probably she was a little bit nervous, I don't know exactly, but I was
feeling that, so I just wanted to go and try to come to the net to put more pressure and I
did well.
Q: Knowing what happened last
year between Chanda Rubin and Arantxa Sanchez Vicario, what was going through your mind
when you were 6/6 in the third?
A: I started to think that it was going probably to be very difficult to
win the match because I have seen the match of course and I know that she is a very good
fighter, so I think at the changeover when the trainer came she just asked me what was the
score and I totally didn't know. I knew it was like 6/5 or I didn't know and I was so
nervous and she asked me, well, do you know and I said no, and I checked the score and
probably the treatment helped me a little bit to relax before the game.
Q: This would be the best start to
a year for you?
A: Definitely, yes, definitely.
Q: I see where you highest ranking
ever was 35. Playing this well, do you think you can make the to 20?
A: I have no idea; I don't know. It is very hard to be in the top 20, I
think something that I don't think at the moment. I just try to play my best game and
practise hard before I came here, a lot of condition, and at the moment everything is
going fine, so I just cross my fingers for the next match.
Q: Would this be the best two or
three weeks of your career form-wise?
A: Yes, yes, especially at the beginning of the year. I played well here
in '92, I played fourth round already, when I just started my career, and I think it is
the second best, probably the best one of the two that I played fourth round, so I am very
excited.
Q: Can you identify why you are
playing so well at the moment?
A: I don't know, I don't know. It is a very good question. No, it is just
that I have a game very flat and my body is not very strong, if you can see the kind of
game I am playing, and I just practise in November and December, I made a lot of physical
training, a lot of running, and I think it helped me to get stronger, so like today my
body was not too weak. If you can see I played so many matches already, so I think it is
the positive thing that I did last month and it helped me so much.
Q: Is there anything before your
next game that you want to improve on from today's?
A: No, not really, no. Probably my condition has to be stronger and
stronger. I think I have to work a lot and try to do my best. For the rest, I am 23 years
old, I am already - this is my sixth year on the tour, so I think I improve already a lot
and I just have to go for everything that I can.
Q: You mentioned the balls were a
little heavy?
A: I don't remember last year how the balls were, but I feel probably
because of my arms a little bit also and the wind sometimes, when you play against the
wind and Arantxa she is bringing all the balls back so sometimes I feel that the balls
became heavier and I have no idea about the difference from last year.
Q: Can you just sum up what this
win means to you?
A: Means about, sorry?
Q: How significant it is for you?
A: To win this match?
Q: Yes, today?
A: I had some objectives last year. My objective was to go to Atlanta, it
was the Olympic Games for me and I could play for my country, so I was very excited for
that and from now on I never had the chance to beat somebody in the top 10. I beat already
two or three girls in the top 20 but never in the top 10. I was very close against Huber
last year and I think this year I try really to win against somebody of the top 10 and I
was not too nervous, actually, at the end of the match. I think that helped me a lot, and
I made my goal today, so I am very happy.
Q: You were quite confident at the
net today. Have you always been a good volleyer?
A: I am not a natural volley player, but I work. I played a lto of
doubles the two last week, so it helped me a lot, and I think today I knew that I had to
come to the net because she was playing a few times short and if I didn't take my chacne
to go to the net and put more pressure, I think I would lose the match.
Q: When you started out in tennis,
were you basically a baseline player?
A: I am definitely a baseline player, but agressive, so now I got to the
net as much as I can but it is not so easy.
Q: Do you feel ready for another
third set match against Chanda?
A: Maybe, after a good rest, yes, I don't think now to my next match, not
at the moment. I am going to have a good massage today.
Q: Have you played Chanda before?
A: A long time ago, very long time, '91.
Q: How did it go?
A: I won, six years ago, but Chanda, she is very nice, she is a very nice
person. We knew already for a very long time, so I think it can be a good match, it
depends on the conditions.
Q: Maybe a long match?
A: I don't know. Not a lot of rally, I think.
Q: Does your husband have his hat
back yet?
A: I have no idea. You should ask him, not me.
Q: You have made the Olympics, you
have beaten a top 10 player, so what is the next target for you?
A: That was my target, actually. I played Arantxa in the first round at
the Olympics last year and I lost in two sets. Probaly It helped me already to have played
her already once, so I knw a little bit how she was playing.
Q: What is the next target for you
now you have achieved those two?
A: I don't know, I am sorry.
Q: Can you remind us who you beat
and who you lost to here in '92?
A: I beat Sukova at the time she was 17 and I lost to Amy Frazier. Graf
was not playing that year.
Q: Does the trainer think that your
arm may be a problem in two days time?
A: I think it is not bad because it is not tendonitis. It is just a
muscle, so I need a lot of stretching and massage, so it helps me a lot and I have to ice
a few times and I take anti-inflammatory pills, so I think it is going to be okay.
Q: Can you tell us something about
your coach, where you found him and how long you have been with him?
A: My coach, I am working with the French Federation. We have two
federations, actually, in Belgium. I practise with the French one, so the coaches working
with me are Eduardo Masso, he was playing before, and Carlos Rodriguez, they are the two
main coaches at the federation so I practised with both before I came here and my husband
just travels with me for a very long trip, so like here. It is very expensive to have a
coach also for you for one month's travelling and I just prepare very well before I came
here.
Q: So you don't want to actually
have a coach travel?
A: I have, he is travelling like a certain time during the year, like
maybe 10 or 12 tournaments somebody is going with me. For the rest I travel with my
husband or by myself.
Q: So who is actually your coach
here, this week?
A : My husband.
Q: Your husband is your coach?
A: Yes, he can play, we can practise together. In Belgium he is pretty
good ranked so he can help me.
Q: Does that work well, having your
husband coach you, or are there times when there is some friction?
A: No, we don't have friction, we have very good relation together and he
is very nice, so I mean he is just there every match and he is trying to give me
confidence and when I need somebody to practise or to do some extra work he is always
there, but I still have contact with my coach at home, with fax or with phones, so it is
not like I am living for one month and I don't have any contact with them. I keep the
contact.
Q: And as a young girl when did you
know you wanted to be a professional tennis player?
A: I finished my study because I wanted to do that. Tennis is very hard,
I think, physically, so I knew that I had to finish first school, you never know what
could happen, so in '91 I decided to turn pro. At that time I was ranked around 120 or
something, so I was pretty close from the top 100 so I started to play well. I played
third round at the US Open and I just continue and continue and now I am ranked 43.
Q: What was it you studied?
A: Basic. In Belgium you have to finish school to graduate 18 years old,
so I finished. I have my diploma to go to university.
Q: When the match finished the
whole stadium stood up and applauded for a long time?
A: Yes.
Q: How did that feel? Have you been through that before?
A: Even at the end, before I finished the match, during the match already
the people they were unbelievabel. The atmosphere for me was I just feel something in my
heart, like the people were behind me and it helped me a lot during the whole third set,
even when I was losing 5/2, and I think it is and unbelievable thing happening to me today
and you just feel like everybody is behind you and it is incredible.
Q: Did you think maybe that the
Australian crowd liked the way you played, the fact that you came to the net and volleyed,
that you played a game that we like in this country?
A: I don't know. Maybe because I play offensive, probably the people they
like to watch that, and because I was the outsider today so usually I think the people are
not all the time for the best one, but for the other one, so I think that today it
happened to me.
Q: What is your profile like back
at home? Do people recognise you everywhere you go?
A: No, no, no. I live in a very small village and the people are very
nice there, but in my home town when I was living before, when I go back some people they
recognise me, but not like they come to me and they want a signature or autograph or not.
It is not like that.
Q: So today was very nice?
A: Yes, very nice.
Q: Do you have the feeling you
could be a big star now?
A: No, I am normal, I am human, I am a human being, I am like you, so I
don't feel like I should be a star. I mean you can maybe be a star as well, you are
writing for your press, or probably your are a big star in your country as well.
Q: It's good. You should try it.
A: Maybe later when I finish my career.
Q: What medical condition did you
start the game with, today's game; what was the situation this morning?
A: I was fine at the beginning, until 5-4 in the first set, I feel like
something cramping in my back, but I don't know. It was not really cramp actually, it was
something with the muscle. And it was very hurting, like when I was walking and when I was
turning my elbow, I was feeling everything in the end of my back and it was very bad. So I
asked for the trainer, she helped me and with the corset that she put in my back, it help
a lot.
Q: What did she put in your back?
A: I don't know the name in English, I'm so sorry. Corset, you know, like
before in the past, the woman.
Q: Now we don't have any more?
A: No, but I said in the past, something like that.
Q: Did you give any thought at the
end of the first set to pulling out of the match?
A: I'm a fighter. It's the eighth final and I just have to give
everything that I could, so I just fight for every point and I didn't - I tried not
thinking about my problem, even if it was there, because I had problem with my stomach, I
had problem with my arms. But actually today these two problems were okay, so I just fight
for every point and it helped me a lot.
Q: How did you perceive the
referee?
A: She was not very nice, actually, the referee, with me today. The
conditions were very bad for both of us and one time she asked me, like, because I was
talking too muck time between the points, because normally you have to be ready for the
serve, once she just tell me that I was talking too much time. But it's like, the
conditions are so bad for the player on court. For the people watching it is very nice,
you are in the shadow, but we just like in an oven, like you feel the wind very warm, and
the ground is a little bit sticky and it's very hard to play. So the conditions were too
bad today, I think, for us.
Q: Do you think that you benefited
at all from that 10 minutes or so you spent lying on the ground covered in ice?
A: I don't know. I couldn't drink so much and every changeover that I
had, I had to rush, trying to get treatment, trying to stretch, trying to relax and it's
not really easy when you know that you don't have so much time. I don't know if it really
helped me, but probably the treatment helped a little bit for my back but not for my
nerves.
Q: What effect do you think that
had on Chanda Rubin? Do you think she was unsettled by the break in the game?
A: It may be a problem for her, because it is not easy when you know your
opponent is a little bit injured, and she has some problem, then she probably wants to
continue, then I have to stop again for my back. So I don't think it is the best condition
for her but it is the game, it is part of the game, somebody is injured, it could happen
the opposite, so I could be the one who is waiting for my opponent.
Q: How do you feel about the fact
that this is the first time ever that two women players from Belgium reached the quater
finals of a major Grand Slam tournament and do you think it will have an impact on the
popularity of the game in Belgium?
A: I will answer the first question first. I think for Belgium, because
we are a very small country, it's a great oppurtunity for the people to see that Belgium
players are good fighters, and I think it's going to help them to push them to try to do
their best and to try to do good results, so I think it's very positive. The second
question?
Q: Do you think it will have an
impact on the popularity of tennis in Belgium?
A: I think tennis already is very popular in Belgium, the second sport
after the soccer, and people are already playing a lot. So I think probably the people
will get a little bit more involved. I think it's good for us to play for the country
also, so far away from Belgium, so I think it's very good for everything happening at the
moment.
Q: Going back to your injury, were
you still feeling back pain during the second set as well?
A: Yes, it was very bad feeling, like cramp, like needle in your back,
and I think because I had a problem in my abdomen, that I tried to compensate, probably
the pain that I had before there, with my back and probably started from there. But, like
I said, I tried to forget the pain because otherwise you are fighting against too many
things at the same time.
Q: Do you have a feeling that you
are the biggest surprise of this tournament?
A: Probably. I don't know. It's hard to say at the moment because I'm
playing very well. Actually I beat the second seed, so probably I was probably not
favourite at all and probably I should be the biggest surprise at the moment with my
ranking 43, arriving in the quarter finals. So I'm the only one I think in the top 40 at
the moment who reached the quarter finals in this tournament.
Q: At this stage can you see
yourself holding the great cup at the end of the tournament?
A: No. I have to play, I think I have to play tomorrow and Mary Joe
Fernandez is a very good player. She has a lot of experience for Grand Slams. So I think
it's going to be a good match tomorrow and I'm very excited to be already in the quarter
finals, but I try to do my best and you never know.
Q: Do you think the injury to your
back might have some impact on tomorrow's game?
A: At the moment I saw the doctor and it's not too bad, so I'm going to
have a lot of treatment today and massage, so probably it's going to help and with a good
night's rest, tomorrow morning I will feel not too bad.
Q: Dominique, you mentioned an
abdominal problem. Was that muscular or were you just unwell?
A: Muscular, like something has been pulled, like stretched too much, but
I feel whan I serve. But I have taped that so I didn't feel anything today.
Q: You mentioned that tennis is the
second most popular sport in Belgium. I thought that was cycling?
A: No, football is very popular, the first one. Maybe cycling is second
and tennis third, I don't know. I think tennis is very popular. As you can see, a lot of
people are playing more and more and I don't know about cycling so much, but I think it's
probably second or third, but top five of the best sports, one of the most popular sports
in Belgium.
Q: What sort of response has there
been in Belgium to your result on Saturday against Arantxa?
A: I just spoke with my family, so they were very happy that I won, and I
recieve a lot of congratulations from people around me, and the press, of course, were
very nice with me. I think it's a big impact for me and probably for the women's tennis
also.
Q: How hot should it become before
one should say you cannot play any more?
A: What do you mean by the question?
Q: Do you think you always have to play, whatever the circumstances are?
When does it get too hot to play?
A: It's hard to say. I think today for a human being the conditions were
not the best ones we could get. I mean, it is unbelievable, it's like an oven, like you
feel the heat coming into you and your legs are heavy and you really have to pay attention
in these conditions. So I get prepared already yesterday, I drunk a lot of fluid yesterday
night and this morning, so it helped me. But I think it's very hard to play in these kind
of conditions.
Q: But it never gets too hot to
play?
A: It was hot but, I mean, it was also a little bit windy so it helped I
think today. I thought it was going to be worse that that but it was already bad.
