Day 8 - An interview with Justine Henin - Sunday, June 3, 2007

Q. I don't know if the players want to see it, but I think the fans want to see a rematch of Key Biscayne.

JUSTINE HENIN: I don't want to see a rematch of Key Biscayne. No, I hope it's going to be a good match. It's been a good match in Miami, and I should have won this match at that time. I was so close and I was leading completely the match and I was a better player on the court. But she came back.

Mentally she's been very strong. Maybe I was a little bit scared to win that one, and the best won the match and she just kept fighting. That's why she's a champion. It's never over.

And this match is different. It's different surface. It's different situation. And, yeah, we will see. We will have to give everything and to be at our best level to show good tennis. And the best player will win.

Q. After the match, maybe even a day after, when the emotions had calmed down and you and Carlos had a chance to go over the match, what conclusions did he come to about your play?

JUSTINE HENIN: Well, that I was playing great in that match and I was -- I had the match under control completely. And I just lost my intensity. I wouldn't say my concentration, but probably I was not aggressive anymore at the end of the second set. It's not about losing two match points. It's only two points in the match. But the fact is that when I was down 6-5 in the second set, I completely lost my mind. And I wasn't -- my emotions weren't under control anymore at that time.

So it's been tough, but it's been a good match and I was very happy to finally play well in Miami. And I would have preferred to win that one, but that's tennis. And that's how it happened, and I cannot change it now.

Q. Back to today's match, you were 4-Love up and you were hitting winners both sides of the court second set. Did you let go a little bit? How come she got back to 4-all?

JUSTINE HENIN: I don't know. It's pretty usual for me, and, yeah, it's been only on a few points. She started to play better. I lost a little bit my intensity also and started to do a couple of mistakes.

But it was generally much more positive, I thought. And it's been a lot of fun for me today on the court. I really enjoyed my game. And it was good.

Q. Is it uncomfortable for you that everyone's going to be bringing up the 2003 match with Serena, that that's going to be such a big deal in the next 48 hours?

JUSTINE HENIN: Not at all, because, you know, after talking to you today, it's going to be my match in two days and that's it. So it's going to be okay. No, you know what happened in 2003, it's been one of the best memories of my career. It's been the beginning of an amazing adventure in Grand Slams for me. And I would -- I will never forget that moment. And I'm totally fine about that. It's four years ago now and a lot of things happened in our careers, in our personal lives. And we probably grew up a lot.

So the situation is completely different this time. So, yeah, it seems very far away from now.

Q. So nothing about that controversy takes anything away from your memories of that?

JUSTINE HENIN: No, not at all.

Q. Also I heard a couple people say this is the Grand Slam event where you're most comfortable. Would you agree with that and do you think the crowd is more with you here than other places?

JUSTINE HENIN: It would be hard to not agree with that. I won it three times. So it's probably that I feel comfortable here. It's also the tournament where I feel a lot of pressure. But it's just that I have to deal with it. But I had a lot of success here in the past and I have to agree with that.

And everyone sees me as the favorite. I don't consider myself as the biggest favorite. We are going to be eight players in the quarter on Tuesday. And we all can go through the end and we have to beat everyone. So it's going to be tough. A Grand Slam is long and tough and you must be in 100 percent in every match.

Q. How do you think your view on life has changed since 2003?

JUSTINE HENIN: Well, a lot of things have changed. A lot of things have improved. And I grew up a lot, and I see my career and my life differently. And the thing is that what I keep from that is all the emotions my career brings to me, and that's very important to me, all the emotions I can get on the tennis court.

I don't want to be part of the history of the game. It's not my main goal. It's just, you know, the joy that I can get on the tennis court, giving 200 percent, making a lot of sacrifices, and then win tournaments and offer that to people I love so much.

And that's why I keep playing tennis. And it's the same in my life. If I can give to people I love so much, it's -- I'm very happy and I understood a lot of things in the last few years and probably most importantly in the last few months.

Q. Do you think you've become more positive since then?

JUSTINE HENIN: I just tried to become a better person. And we all try to become better persons and to grow up and to give our best and to give love around us and to give happiness. And that's what I try to do also with my foundation and everything. I just want to get more concerned, more involved, and a lot of things have changed. And I feel much better with myself.

Q. Serena gave the impression to many people with the way she won in Australia and also Miami that if she's around and playing and in good shape, that she's an utterly dominant kind of player. Does that put this particular upcoming match and give it even more significance than it would normally have?

JUSTINE HENIN: Well, it's going to be a tough one. Everyone knows how strong is Serena and she's a champion. She will never change. She doesn't have anything to prove to anyone. She did it in the past many times. Everyone asked me, is she back in her best level. That's not the question. I mean, the thing is, I'm going to play Serena on Tuesday and I will just to be focused on my goal, tactically on the court, what I will have to do, and also mentally to be very strong.

I want to win this match and I will give everything I can to do it. But who knows what can happen. That's why tennis is so beautiful, because no one knows what's going to happen on the court on Tuesday.

Q. If there's any point from Key Biscayne, it's what you learned from that match to take into the next one. You know, Serena has so often when she gets behind, she is just such a strong player from behind. She almost wills herself sometimes to win. And I wonder whether in that match at Key Biscayne you might have gotten caught up in that as she begins to shriek louder the intensity goes up in the match and does that have something of an intimidating effect on you?

JUSTINE HENIN: You always can take lessons from what you leave on the tennis court, especially when you lose. It's been on a few points that we played the match, I think, and I -- you know, I also won matches serving match points, and I lost matches having match points myself. That's tennis. And I wasn't very focused on that match for such a long time. It took two days for me to recover from that and I think I took lessons.

It's just that with a player like Serena, you must be, from the first point until the end, 200 percent on every point and don't give her anything. And that's why she's strong and, yeah, we will see what's going to happen.

Q. You mentioned that you now want to share your joy with your family. Does that include your father and your siblings or is there still a distance between you?

JUSTINE HENIN: No, I confirmed a few -- I think two weeks ago that I have contacts again with my family and that includes my father and my brothers and my little sister. But I just want to keep it private. It's a lot of joy. I'm very happy about that. But that's it.

Q. Obviously you almost beat Serena on hard courts, but your wins over her have only been on clay. I'm just wondering if you can talk about what the surface -- how that affects the matches between the two of you?

JUSTINE HENIN: Well, it's been -- there's a surface where I feel the most comfortable. But it also means I have to be aggressive on the clay. And I proved it when I did beat her in the past. And she can play well on clay. She won here at the French Open in Paris. Not a lot of players can play well on clay, just a few ones feel the surface and are feeling comfortable on it.

And, yeah, that gives a confidence that I beat her on clay in the past. But this situation is going to be different, and I'm going to have more time, for sure, to organize, build my game, and get strong in the match.

Q. Considering that Serena's probably had the best season so far this year, and you're No. 1, is it disappointing for you at all to have to play in this round of the tournament?

JUSTINE HENIN: Well, when you want to win the Grand Slam, you have to beat everyone. That's tough. But this kind of match can also give a lot of confidence. And you have to beat everyone. You have to be the best if you want to win a Grand Slam. And a Grand Slam is very long. It's hard. And you really have to be at your best level all the time. That's what I'll have to do on Tuesday.

So, you know, in the quarters or in the final, I don't think it does change a lot of things.

THE MODERATOR: Questions in French.

Q. There are good things in your game. Are you happy with the way you played tennis so far?

JUSTINE HENIN: Well, I know that certain things are only starting now. I had ups and downs. That's true. At some stages I lost in concentration and intensity. That's part of me. And I need to avoid these type of problems. But I've always managed to keep the match under control. So, okay, reaching the second week, this is something you can no longer accept. What I've done in the past was coming to my usual level in the second week. I know I can't make these small mistakes anymore, because in second week, this is something you can't afford. But today, I think I had many positive things in my game.

Q. It's going to be even more difficult with somebody like Serena. Is it worrying? You have two days ahead of you. Is it worrying you have ups and downs?

JUSTINE HENIN: No, I'm not worried today, because all players go through ups and downs in every match they play. And that's true for all players. And that's perfectly all right. Of course, I'll try to be at my best level. It's part of my motivation. I want to win this tournament. And everything happens in your head more than in your racquet, really, because it's not without tennis and the way we play tennis that we make a difference now. It's just the one that want it more that's going to win.

Q. When Serena answered our questions during press conference we asked her if she had any conversation with you since 2003. And she said not since 2003, but she never wanted to say more. Did you have a conversation?

JUSTINE HENIN: No, we never talked about what happened in 2003, because, well, that's the way it is. We each have our own career. We live our own lives. And I think things have calmed down. In Miami, we had great respect for one another. We fought like tigers, both of us, and in Miami there was great respect on both sides. And that's it. I think it's no use trying to revive an old story. That was four years ago.

Q. In an interview between a colleague, Bart, and Serena in the US not long ago, Serena said I have -- there is more rivalry between Serena and myself than with Sharapova because we've played so many games. Do you feel that she's more your opponent than any other big players?

JUSTINE HENIN: Well, she's always tried to be intimidating. She's always tried to impress her opponent. So everybody would talk a lot about her. And as compared to Sharapova, I think, well, they've played one another recently. As for Serena, no, we've played many good matches together in the past and we had had great fun and we enjoyed it. So I think it's going to be the same thing on Tuesday. And I hope we'll enjoy playing this quarterfinal, the two of us, and I want to make the most out of this match and to use my best tennis to go as far as possible in this tournament.

Q. How do you feel about your serve at the moment?

JUSTINE HENIN: Well, it was probably not as good as it used to be today, considering the number of double faults in the first set. I think there were six double faults in the first set. But I try and be more positive, more optimistic. In the first week the quality of my first serve improved, and I know I have a good first serve and I'll use it. It's something I'll need on Tuesday.

Q. Now, this new match versus Serena is going to be on clay. Is it an advantage for you?

JUSTINE HENIN: Not obvious. I feel more confident playing her on clay than on grass. But Miami is a match I should have won. It was on hard surface. And now we're on clay. I very often won. I won in 2003. So that gives me confidence. But that was a long time ago. And things of changed in our lives and in our careers. We've both evolved quite a lot. So I can't predict what's going to happen on Tuesday, but I want to be ready. That's for sure.

Q. You said that there are things that make you become superstitious on the court, the presence of Emmanuel for instance.

JUSTINE HENIN: Yes I'm negotiating for him to stay. But I love having children around me. Emmanuel is -- he's luck to me. He was there in Dubai. I'm quite certain you've seen my victory there, and he was so happy. He's eight now, and so all this brings a freshness and happiness and I'm very happy I have great people around me. His reaction at the age of eight tells more than when he was three or four. Yes, he follows my career now. When I'm in a foreign country, he would call me. He's more and more interested, and even sometimes puts pressure on me, because he says, "Tin Tin," that's the way he calls me, he says, "You must win."

So we love each other. With Matheo, as well. But Emmanuel, who's experienced many things with us, and he is a great kid and it's just sheer happiness having him with me.

Q. You never lost when he was around, Roland Garros, Dubai.

JUSTINE HENIN: Shh, shh. This is something I don't want to talk about.