Monday, December 30th

USA - Uzbekistan Post-Match Presser

James, a slow start out there tonight, but you certainly found some form towards the end there.

(James) Yeah, it was a tough start. I haven’t played a match in a couple of months, besides practice matches. So, it’s a little different out here. He played a match just a couple of days ago. It was tough for me to get started, and I just really didn’t know what to expect. I think getting used to the travel and the time zones and everything, it took me a little while. Then I realised my legs were a little tired, and I figured the best way to make them feel better was to win. They always feel a little better then. I fought pretty hard in the second set, he gave me a couple of freebies and I just tried to take advantage when he gave me those chances.

Serena, you seemed to pull off the jet lag pretty quickly.

(James) She’s younger than I am. (Serena) Age, I guess.

How good do you feel about your first match of the season?

(Serena) It was alright. It wasn’t anything spectacular, that’s for sure.

How did you spend the off season?

(Serena) I tried to take a little break, but you can’t take too much of a break because you have to get ready for the tournament in Australia. I just sat at home and that’s about it.

How long was it that you didn’t hit a ball?

(Serena) Oh, I hit balls.

Serena, had you heard much about the Hopman Cup before you came here this week?

(Serena) Yeah, sure, I watched it every year in Australia. Maybe I was in Sydney a few years to watch it, so I had definitely heard about it.

Were you keen to accept an invitation?

(Serena) Yeah I was really excited, and I didn’t want to play Sydney this year. I just wanted to try to do something different, and try to get down in Australia a bit earlier. It turned out nice.

Serena, we’ve had Cat Woman and the Pink Panther; have you got a name for the orange outfit yet?

(Serena) I’ll have a name tomorrow. (James) She’s got to sleep on it.

The Australian Open is obviously a goal of yours now, Serena, after the disappointment of last year?

(Serena) Yeah, I mean, everything happens for a reason, and maybe it was best I didn’t play last year, so I can’t really complain. But yes, it’s obviously a goal for me this year.

You’re not playing in Sydney you say, what are you going to do next week?

(Serena) Oh, you know, work hard and practice.

Will you go to Melbourne to do that?

(Serena) I believe I will be in Melbourne, yes.

James, are you looking forward to your next match against Tommy Robredo?

(James) Yeah, I think we’ve only played once before and we actually didn’t get to finish it. It was a Davis Cup match and it was a dead rubber, and it got rained out in the middle of it. So, it will be nice to actually finish a match this time on a slightly different surface. He’s been playing great this last year he’s just come off, same with me, so it will be fun. He is a friend of mine, so we’ll definitely have a good time.

His singles record is pretty good here; if he is a friend of yours, he probably told you how well he did here last time.

(James) No, I don’t know…he’s probably not going to brag that much – I think he’s pretty humble about that. But he has had a great record and hopefully I can stop that streak. We’ll see. He’s a good player and I think I’ll definitely have to play better than I did today, but I think another day of practice down here and getting used to the time zone - I think I’ll be a little sharper.