An Interview With:
VENUS WILLIAMS

VENUS WILLIAMS defeats SANIA MIRZA
6-1, 3-6, 6-2
2nd Round

KEVIN FISCHER: Go ahead with questions for Venus.

Q. Congratulations on the win today.
VENUS WILLIAMS: Thank you.

Q. Is this a good opening-round test for you?
VENUS WILLIAMS: Oh, it's always fun out there. These kind of matches are
great to pull out. And you know, it was a great opening round, ready for the
next one.

Q. Does this get you ready for clay courts?
VENUS WILLIAMS: Yeah. Yeah, absolutely.

Q. Can you talk about the third set? I mean it's tied 1-1, and she actually
went up 2-1. I think she'd won like seven of the past eight matches leading
up to that. What did you do to stop that and kind of take over the way you
did at the end?
VENUS WILLIAMS: Just focus on my shots. And you know, I have a lot of
experience, so I definitely rely on that, too. And I've been in these
situations before, so I rely on that, that I've done that and come through.

Q. Were you surprised how well she played, and does she always hit that hard
when you play her?
VENUS WILLIAMS: Well, when I play her, yes. I'm not sure what she does
against everyone else. She has a lot of talent and a lot of power, and she
uses it to her advantage. I think also when she's playing against me,
she's gotta go for it, and I think also there's a sense of nothing to lose,
because when you look at the numbers and the rankings and statistics, you
know, I'm supposed to win this match, so I think that gives her an
opportunity to swing freely.

Q. It seemed at some points you didn't look comfortable out there. You
slipped twice. You were changing racquets. Did you feel comfortable out there
or it took a little while to get comfortable out there?
VENUS WILLIAMS: Oh, I feel comfortable. This is my job. This is what I do, so
I'm comfortable.

Q. I guess maybe, then, was the surface -- it just happens?
VENUS WILLIAMS: The courts are wet, so when you slide and they're wet, you
stop suddenly. It doesn't slide all the way through. So when they're wet,
this happens on clay, you go over. So I'm okay, it seems.

Q. How do you feel about coming back to Charleston?
VENUS WILLIAMS: I'm happy to be here. I love playing in the U.S., and like I
said the other day, it's a bright spot on the calendar for me to be able to
play at home and in the States and go for a title here, so it's very exciting.

Q. You said it's always fun out there, and I guess I'm just a little
incredulous. Is that what keeps you coming back, the fun? And if that's it,
what other things keep you coming back?
VENUS WILLIAMS: I love what I do, and while I'm here and while I have the
opportunity and the talent and the strength and the blessings, I want to give
100 percent. And I could never hang it up knowing that I have a ton left in
me, so I'm going to go for it until it's over.

Q. Good for you. Thank you. Did you get worried at all when you had been
broken the first two times in the third set?
VENUS WILLIAMS: Not necessarily, no. It's disappointing for that moment, but
that's not the match. A lot of times you get so caught up in the moment. I
don't hang on to the past so much in the match, but it's not ideal. I'm going
to try to prevent that in the next match.

KEVIN FISCHER: Anything else? Very good. Thank you.
VENUS WILLIAMS: Thank you.


End of transcript...