Day 12 - An interview with Justine Henin - Thursday, June 7, 2007

Q. Jelena just had a conference, and she said that she was very -- that you were very dominant today. What can you tell me about your match today with Jelena Jankovic, and also, what do you expect in the match against another Serbian player, Ana Ivanovic?

JUSTINE HENIN: Yeah, I was ready to play a tough match, because all our last meetings were pretty hard, and all my matches in three sets. So I did expect for a tough fight, and I was really ready to play hard on every point. And that worked pretty well from the first point until the end. I've been very intense. And tactically, I've played pretty heavy also on her forehand. And she didn't like it that much.

And so it was very good. Very positive today. And on clay, it was the level I played. It's going to be another tough match on Saturday. I just hope I can keep going. She's in great shape, Ivanovic. She won Berlin; she's playing great in this tournament.

So the Grand Slam final is a very special match, and I hope it's going to be a good match, and that I can go to the end. But it's going to be tough, and I will have to be at my best level.

Q. What tactic are you planning to use against Ivanovic?

JUSTINE HENIN: Maybe I'm not going to talk about this now, because I'm not really focusing that much yet. It's going to be time for me to prepare it tomorrow. And also, because I just want to keep that for me.

Q. Some people have commented about how relaxed you look, at ease with things both on the court and off it. Do you feel any more so this year than, say, 12 months ago?

JUSTINE HENIN: Well, the pressure is still here. I just try to deal the best I can with it, and that's working pretty good. I enjoy my game. I love being on the court, and I enjoy every moment of the tournament on and off court. It's a lot of joy. And it's just great to be again here in the final. It's a very nice feeling. And it's been my goal in the last couple of years, and I just hope the story can keep going now.

Q. You are closing on some very impressive records here. You're probably the best player here at Roland Garros since Steffi Graf. Does this mean anything to you? Are you conscious of this? Do you think about it?

JUSTINE HENIN: Let's wait what's going to happen on Saturday. But it's an honor that a lot of people are talking about me like that, but that's not the most important thing for me. It's just that I love to win here. It's my favorite event. It's a long story. That was the tournament I was watching when I was a little girl. And there was a dream for me to win it one time. And then I did it three times. And I have another opportunity. But I still have a lot of things to do to win a fourth time. So we'll see.

Q. Does it matter to you how much the degree to which you're appreciated for what you're doing? I mean, people are -- Roger walks on water, basically. And some other players get tremendous respect at certain tournaments. Does this kind of thing matter to you at all?

JUSTINE HENIN: It's good to feel the respect. And I do have the same respect for a lot of other players, men and women. So, no, it's great. It's a very nice feeling. But every time I walk on the court, I try to just enjoy my game. I love being out there. I do it for myself. I do it for people I love, my fans, and a lot of people. So it's just an amazing human adventure, also.

Q. Just getting back to the match itself. What would you say was the key to your victory today?

JUSTINE HENIN: Well, I thought I've been very aggressive in the beginning of the match. And tactically for me, it was important to open the court a little bit more. She loves to won on the baseline, and that was important for me to play pretty heavy. She likes to play always at the same rhythm. And I did push her a lot on her forehand and then changed the directions pretty often.

And I've been very aggressive on her serve. It's probably on her, you know, weakness. So I just tried to take advantage of that. And I've been pretty consistent. And I just showed her I wanted to win this match.

Q. Carlos said a few minutes ago that this is one of the most beautiful tactical matches he's ever seen you play. Do you agree, first of all? And second of all, have your tactics improved, perhaps, over your career even more than maybe your actual physical play on the court?

JUSTINE HENIN: Yeah, I mean, I think it's been a tactical match. It was perfect. It's not very often Carlos is saying good things about me, so I will enjoy this moment for one second, please (laughing). And, no, it's been -- I think it's been better generally in this tournament. And I just hope I can keep going to the end this way. That all the advice that he gave me, all the things he wanted from me, I did it, generally, pretty good.

So it's important to remain focused on my goals, you know. If I have to do it, do it from the first point until the end. And it's not easy. You need a lot of concentration. You need to, you know, expect a lot from yourself on every point, and that's hard. But it's been pretty good in this tournament.

Q. There were two very entertaining semifinals today. But there might have been people in the crowd who would have liked to have seen more tennis. Do you think there will ever come a time when, perhaps, this end of the Grand Slam, women will play best of five sets?

JUSTINE HENIN: Oh, oh, I don't know that. I think women's tennis is good like it is now. And physically, you know, we're not maybe that strong. It will be also tough. And I'm not quite sure it would be good for tennis. You wouldn't see a very good level in a very long match. And it's important the quality, and to be intense, I think it's much, much better.

THE MODERATOR: Questions in French, please.

Q. You knew Jankovic because you defeated her five times already. But each time the games were very close in terms of results. So were you confident or did you fear her because it was tough matches each time?

JUSTINE HENIN: No, I was very stressed at the beginning, and then I respect my opponents anyway. But on the other hand, it was also an advantage for me, because I knew that it was a bit of pressure for her that I defeated her five times in a row.

And I was ready both mentally and physically. And I was focusing on my tactics. And it was the first time I was walking on the court, not playing according to my instincts. I had a very well-thought-out tactics, and I managed to use it, and I managed to remain focused.

And in the last time I played her was too irregular, and that made a difference today.

Q. This Roland Garros, as compared to the others you've played, what would you say about this specific tournament?

JUSTINE HENIN: Well, it's important to me, because I had a difficult beginning of the year, and it's a great pleasure for me to be back on this Grand Slam tournament. I have far more fun being on the court than in the past. And, you know, I'm just enjoying every moment of it. And I'd like to go until the end, and to get the reward for all the efforts I've put into this, this tournament.

But, you know, I realize how fortunate I am to play, and to be able to play, and to be able to make a career with my passion. And I try not to ask myself too many other questions.

Q. It was important for you to win the first game, wasn't it, to capitalize on your confidence?

JUSTINE HENIN: Well, I usually receive, that's not a secret for any of you. But I'm now ready to start serving. And I came to the net, I had this backhand along the line, and I was very present right at the beginning. Physically, it was not easy, because I had to run a lot. There were very long exchanges. I felt at 1-Love in the beginning of the second set, I felt a bit tired at that point. But it was important for me to just gather my energies and win the second set.

Q. In Australia when the girls were playing, was it difficult for you not to be there?

JUSTINE HENIN: Well, I didn't follow the games, because there were other important things in my life going on at that moment, and tennis was not a priority at that time. It took a bit of time for tennis to come back on the top list of my priorities. You know, there are times in life when you need to define your priorities, and at that time, it wasn't.

And then my love for the game came back. I had difficult moments in Paris, during the Gaz de France Open. And then I started moving on, and I had many positive things happen in my life afterwards.

But, you know, tennis is doing it all over again, every time you play, every match you play. And on Saturday, I have to be at the top once again.

Q. If you allow, let's talk about something else. Today is a beautiful day for Belgium sport with your victory, but it's also a very sad day, because Frank Vandenbrook, a cyclist champion, is in the hospital because he tried to commit suicide today. So my question is, is sport at this level times too demanding?

JUSTINE HENIN: Well, it's difficult. There's great pressure. Some people are more fragile than others. And then there are sports -- well, you know, I don't want to talk too much about this, but there are pressures coming from outside. And sometimes you can just blow up a fuse. To manage your career, you need to have the right team around you. And it's a very sad news, because sport should be something in which people can fulfill themselves and should not be something that would destroy people.

So when you talk about doping and things, that makes me feel sad. Because beyond cheating, doping is also a means to put your health at stake. And I don't think it's worth it. I think we should use sport as a means to go beyond our limits, but in a good way, not in a negative way.

Q. Coming back to your match and to your tactics, on your previous matches on clay, during which you defeated her, but these were very tight matches, maybe you'd not applied the proper tactics. What made you identify these proper tactics?

JUSTINE HENIN: Well, because it's a Grand Slam, so I mean, you want everything to be perfect. I don't mean that you don't -- you're not focused enough on the other tournaments, but, you know, Carlos in Berlin saw many things in the match against Jankovic, and he identified her weak points on her forehand, for instance. And when you hit very heavy shots on her forehand, on the baseline, I had more time to organize my game.

And then running to the net, that's something I should do against all players. It was more clear in my head today. It means I need to continue and develop my tactics.

Q. In final, you will play Ivanovic. Do you know her?

JUSTINE HENIN: Well, I know her a bit. I've seen what she has done. She's played an exceptional tournament this year, and she's in great shape. She's won in Berlin. She's very confident. Saturday will be a Grand Slam final, so it's going to be a great -- put pressure on both of us. And I think the most fighting of the two of us will win. And I think it's the one who will manage to control the game better that will win.

She has matured quite a lot over the last years, so this is a match I'm going to work on very seriously. And it's a final, so I need to be ready and to play my best level of tennis if I want to win.

Q. You apparently feel more confident after this quarterfinal against Serena. Do you feel more confident after the first week?

JUSTINE HENIN: I don't like first weeks anyway, because I have to win, because I need to do everything. And I find it difficult to remain focused and concentrated. So I don't have that much fun during the first week matches than in matches like the one I played against Serena, or like the one I played today.

But obviously, you have to play the first week, and get through the first week, before you can reach this level. Then I also had this very long conversation with Carlos after this. We talked for an hour and a half, two hours on Sunday, and that helped me quite a lot.

Q. Did you hear that guy who shouted "I love you"?

JUSTINE HENIN: Yes, I sort of heard that. Oh, that's fine. That's fine (laughing). It's far better than "I hate you."

Q. Can you tell us about this happiness of yours, and how that gives you such a strength?

JUSTINE HENIN: Well, I feel very peaceful. I hope I feel peaceful in two days' time, but this is something you have to work on. And I think that's the key to my victories. I still feel the stress. I couldn't sleep well last night, and quite rightly so. The day I sleep well before an important match in a Grand Slam tournament, maybe that's the time I should think about quitting the tournament.

But I think more peaceful, and that's a great happiness, and that helps me play my best tennis on the courts, so it's very positive.

Q. This tournament is almost over. What would you say after this tournament? Did everything go very fast?

JUSTINE HENIN: No, you know, when you arrive on a Grand Slam tournament, you feel, whoa, seven matches, that's a lot. And then you come to the end, because you played each match after the other, and you don't want to think about anything else. But it's difficult, because you need to build everything, every day. You need to be very rigorous. It's not easy. And that's how time flies.

I mean, it was a wonderful tournament for me. It's not over yet, and I'll be very happy to wake up on Saturday and be there and meet people's expectations during the final. I've worked very hard to reach this level, and I hope everything is fine for me in the final.

Thank you.