Tennis Player Anna Kournikova visited Hurricane Katrina victims in Biloxi, Miss and handed out toys and candy to children affected by natural dissaster.

“It was so heartwarming to see the innocence in their eyes despite what they had been through,” Anna Kournikova said after the visit. It is a great feat by a person who is known for her Good Looks only, otherwise.

Anna Kournikova, who retired from proffessional tennis in 2003 due to back problem, said “the possibility is not completely out of the question”, though she doesn’t have any immediate plan to return to the WTA Tour.

Kournikova said this ahed of Saturday night’s match against Martina Hingis, in Brazil, on a court set up on Rio de Janeiro’s famed Copacabana beach.

Martina Hingis, 25-year-old Swiss player, who recently announced her plan to return to the professional circuit, retired from the WTA Tour in 2002 after battling a series of injuries.

“To face Anna will be a good test for me” and “I’m just waiting for a wild card to play in the Australian Open,” Hingis said.

Anna Kournikova teamed up with Martina Hingis to win the Australian Open doubles title in 1999 and 2002.

Spanish Pop star Enrique Iglesias, lashed out last month rumers, that he deplored non availablity of SMALL sized condoms for purchase.

Now, Iglesias insits his member is NORMAL size and it was hurtful,

The rumors were detrimental to his relationship with tennis beauty ANNA KOURNIKOVA.

“It’s not true and hurtful to me and my girlfriend,” says HERO hitmaker.

Well, Anna should know whether Iglesias should try an enlargement program!

Amanda Coetzer defeated Anna Kournikova, 1-6, 6-4, 7-5 in the Second Round of Pilot Pen International at New Haven, Connecticut, on Wednesday, August 26, 1998. The Post Match Interview with ANNA KOURNIKOVA…

Q. You are normally pretty good at finishing matches you were about to lose. Today it was the other way around. How did it happen?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Well, I think that I started off really well and I played well in the first set and second. But it is still my second tournament, so I have to get back into that, finishing matches, and she got back into the match. And I started to stay back, which I should have been doing that. I should have continued to play the way I had been playing before.

Q. Was your back okay? Looked like a few times you were bending over and stretching. Was that just getting your breath or –

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Yeah, just get some time.

Q. Amanda is a tough player who is always going to be in there banging away right to the end. What can you say about her toughness and how she was able to come on strong at the end?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Well, I think that she was, you know, hanging in the match and just trying to get all the balls back; not try to make any mistakes, which she didn’t — she played very well the last four games of the third set. She was just being tough out there. She didn’t — I guess she didn’t care about the score. She just kept going.

Q. It was really hot out there today. Do you think that affected your play at all?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: No, not really. It wasn’t that hot at all. It was just a little humid, But there was no sun.

Q. You have been outspoken in the past about the age requirements and that that maybe hampered your development somewhat. You weren’t able to play as much as you wanted, and now that you are able to play a lot, you got injured and you lost time. You weren’t able to defend points at Wimbledon. Do you ever get frustrated like maybe I would be in the Top-10 right now or Top 5? Where do you think you might be if you had had a smoother course?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: I don’t want to think about “What if,” or anything like that. I just want to look up into the future and take it day at a time and just, you know, see what is going on like that. I don’t want to say “What if.”

Q. In that first set was she hitting the balls pretty shallow because you were hitting them back pretty hard on her?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: I think because I was hitting hard, that is why she was playing back pretty shallow.

Q. Would you have preferred more matches before going into the Open next week?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: I mean, it was fine. Last week I didn’t play quite as well as this week. This week I played much better. So it was good for me and hopefully I can progress through a couple of days of practice and keep the same form that I was today and get a little bit more and be happy with my condition.

Q. Usually it seems most of the fans are cheering for you. But did it surprise you that there were a lot of people calling out for Amanda during the match today?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: No, I wasn’t — they want a good match probably.

Q. Can you talk about mental toughness? I mean, Amanda obviously came back from 5-3 down to win. Is that something you feel that might be something in the part of your game that you would have to work on a little bit more, not letting her back in the way she did?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: I haven’t played eight weeks, like I said, so it is difficult for me. But I am getting better. Like I said, I am playing much better and feel much better than last week. So other than that, I just have to keep on playing good matches and try to finish them.

Q. Were you surprised that you won that first set so easily?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Not really. I felt like I was playing really good and I was comfortable out there.

Q. In the time that you missed when you couldn’t hit with your right-hand, what did you do to maintain your fitness level, like cross training or whatever?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: I was working out a lot. Running, and all that stuff, going to the gym everyday.

Q. Do you lift weights at all?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Sometimes. Just a little bit, not heavy.

Q. At 3-Love and 5-3 were you as confident as you normally would be or was in the back of your mind the fact that you haven’t played much, obviously, and her reputation is being someone that doesn’t give up?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: I didn’t think at all about her reputation, but I was a little bit nervous to finish out the match - not nervous, but just she started not making any mistakes because she knew that I haven’t played probably a lot so she just tried to probably make me play.

Q. You have talked about the difficulty of you having to get back into that mode of learning how to finish off a match. For you to get into that Top 5 or Top 8 players in the world, is that — is it something that is mental or it is more physical with you?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: For me I just have to get probably maybe matches played and that would be, you know, the mental toughness would be there for that.

Anna Kournikova defeated Barbara Schett, 6-3, 6-2 in the First Round of Pilot Pen International at New Haven, Connecticut, on Sunday, August 23, 1998. The Post Match Interview with ANNA KOURNIKOVA…

Q. How do you like your role, I mean, I guess that the press has kind of made you women’s next tennis sex symbol. Do you like that or would you be rather known how you play tennis rather than you how you look?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: I think if I wouldn’t be playing tennis I wouldn’t be noticed at all, right. So I think that I am here because of tennis and I am concentrating only on tennis.

Q. How long did it take to you get over that injury that you had at Eastbourne?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: I played my first tournament last week and it was eight weeks, I think, since Eastbourne, so…

Q. Can you tell us what you went through while you were rehabilitating?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Well, I was missing playing and I was just trying to stay active doing some things, working out and doing roller-blading, all that, to be outdoors; not to just stay home and do nothing. But I was definitely missing to play.

Q. How long before you could hold a racket again?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: I started — I played a tournament last week before last week before the tournament, I probably practiced maybe ten days or something, a week. It was two weeks ago I started playing.

Q. It was four or five weeks before you could pick up a racket?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Five or six.

Q. Were you surprised that it took so long to heal? When it happened, you thought it would be okay the next day?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: No, I didn’t think it was going to be that bad, but kind of — I probably realized that it was not so good.

Q. Did it hurt when you fell?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Yeah, I felt something different. Of course it hurt. It is like you fell down and it felt like it was a bruise, like something like that.

Q. Considering you missed Wimbledon, which you play very well on grass, how important is the US Open to play in?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Well, any tournament is real important, especially the Grand Slam. So it is a major tournament.

Q. How important is it for you to do well this week with the Open only about a week ago?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: I hope to play as many matches as possible. It is a great preparation. Also it is a great tournament here and I hope to play as many matches as possible.

Q. How did you feel your game was last week?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Well, I think for the first week after not playing eight weeks I think I played pretty well. I won two good matches and then played against Conchita, so I think it was a good start for me.

Q. You mentioned this is a great tournament. The familiarity with Lipton, part of reason you decided to come here?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Definitely, I feel like it is a little bit similar so I feel great. It is a great atmosphere here. Very nice stadium.

Q. You beat Martina Hingis in Berlin; you know quite a lot about her. Since you beat her she has had quite a lot of losses, a couple of them surprising, the gap at the top now is quite small. What do you think the reason is for that?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Well, I think that people get more used to her and playing against her and they are probably getting more and more confident that she is beatable, like anybody else, so that is why probably.

Q. Jennifer Capriati is playing in a qualifying here this weekend. Do you feel it is important for younger players like yourself to learn from, I mean, she has achieved a lot of success when she was very young and then she really went through some tough times. Do you think it is important for younger players like yourself to sort of learn some of the lessons from what she went through?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: I think that everybody is different and I try not to look at other people, you know, I try to look at only good stuff from other people. It can happen to anybody. It doesn’t mean that anything that happens in tennis means that it happens everywhere outside the sport, in the streets and every where, so I don’t really think about that. Everybody is totally different. Everybody has different personality, different mentality and everything.

Q. Does it sometimes to get old or bother you that the media, the public kind of portrays you in the light that they do, as far as maybe not so much focus on your tennis as opposed to everything else?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Like I said I wouldn’t be here if I wasn’t playing tennis, so, I am here because of tennis.

Q. Do you mind all this, you smile and the cameras go off and I guess you are pretty much a recognizable –

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: I wouldn’t be No. 15 in the world — if I would be No. 500 in the world, nobody would care about me.

Q. Do you feel your game is making a lot of progress? Do you believe you are a Top 5 player or potential No. 1?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Well, I am practicing for it. I am going to work hard and I feel that I feel confident that I can beat all the top players.

Q. What is it going to take for you to break into the Top 5, say?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Well, got to play a lot of matches and win a lot of matches.

Q. The impressions some of us had since you have been with Pavel is that you were better able to think on your feet in a match and that you were able to tactically be more complex. Can you tell us some of the things that he has been able to do for you since –

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Of course it helps a lot, somebody is with you everyday; you work on the same thing that you have been working for like last month or something, and somebody is always with you and helping you and mentally and on the court and off the court with everything.

Q. What do you think has made a real difference?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: You can ask him.

Q. I will.

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Can you go outside? I will answer. (laughter). They are all scared now of Pavel.

Q. Leave the room. (Pavel exits interview room) What is the main benefit he has given you apart from being with you?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Definitely he has so much experience. He is a very nice person. He is really calm and relaxed always in any situation. Sometimes I am upset or excited or something, he always calms me down.

Q. Tell us one aspect of your game he has helped you with in particular?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: I think that he tried to improve my all-around game because I am a playing — I try to play on the whole court and come to the net and baseline so I think that he has just improving everything just to bring my whole game together.

Q. Is he good to practice with?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Yeah, he hits the ball quite well. Actually last time I beat him was 7-6. After eight weeks not playing.

Q. Was he still calm after that?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Not really.

Anna Kournikova lost to Conchita Martinez, 0-6, 3-6, in the third round of du Maurier Open Tennis Tournament at Montreal, Canada, on Monday, August 17, 1998. The Post Match Interview with ANNA KOURNIKOVA…

Q: Anna, what do you think the first question is going to be?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: You have to ask the questions.

Q: Well, here’s the first question. It’s two words. What happened?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: It sounds like the favorite question of everybody. Conchita played really well and she didn’t make any mistakes. She made me, you know, work, and I made a little bit too many mistakes in the beginning, you know, and she got more confident probably during the match. So she played well.

Q: Anna, would you say she really beat you or you didn’t play that well?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Well, she won, so I guess she beat me.

Q: No. That I understand, but did she beat you or you didn’t play well? Did she play well?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: No. She played really well and I didn’t play my best game. It was her day today.

Q: Did you feel that the inactivity, all the time out maybe finally caught up with you today more than the other days?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Yeah. I think it’s the first tournament for me for after eight weeks, so I think, you know, I had a good tournament so far, won two matches, and you know, I’m happy with the first tournament.

Q: Do you play next week?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Yes.

Q: In terms of your mental preparation, the fact that you were delayed last night, then postponed, did that perhaps have an effect on today’s result?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Not really. We’re used to waiting a lot, and it was last night I left here at 10:30. So you know, we’re used to waiting all the time.

Q: Anna, you have yet to win a tournament. How far do you think you’re away from making that breakthrough?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Well, I think that, you know, I have to play many more matches and concentrate on each match, and you know, be more confident knowing that I can beat some of the best players.

Q: At one time when the spectators seemed to be jeering your opponent, and you seemed to be upset by the treatment of her when she was serving. I think you turned around and told them to stop it. Did you –

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: No. Nothing like that. I don’t recall anything.

Q: Are you going to be sticking around for the weekend or are you out of here?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Well, I’m playing next week, so I have to get there somehow.

Q: So there’s no time for a quick little Montreal vacation in other words?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: We’ll see. Maybe.

Q: What do you think separates — you talked about you played some more of the established players and winning a tournament. What do you think separates you right now from that level, you know, where you can win a tournament? Just experience or?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Yeah. Like I said, I need to play many more
matches and be more confident that I can beat the best players.

Q: Do you feel like you and Hingis were the young players left in the draw and that now you’re out so it’s more veterans left in? Do you think about that?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: No, not at all. All players are the same. They’re all players and I don’t think about the age at all.

Q: Anna, the crowd surrounding you this weekend at centre court or court No. 1 have been huge. You have an instant huge following here in Montreal. Perhaps a message to the fans who are disappointed you didn’t go any further in the tournament.

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: I’d just like to thank them for coming and I hope they enjoyed watching and I was playing for them.

Q: You were looking often towards your friend Sergi in the front row. Were you looking for reassurance? You many times during the match looked towards him. Can you explain what that was about?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: No. My coach was sitting there and I was just –

Q: Your coach was sitting there? How upset are you by this loss? Is it something you forget quickly or is it going to stick with you for a while?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Well, I have to go on. I’m going to think about next week, and obviously it’s not one of the greatest matches I’ve played, but like I said, Conchita played really well and I’m happy with the performance I gave after eight weeks of not playing.

Q: Conchita looks stronger than you. Do you think you are physically strong enough to beat the big players?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Well, I can’t — I guess I can’t grow anymore, be bigger than her. I feel physically in shape, and like I said, it’s only my third match after not playing, so I’m sore a little bit everywhere. So but physically I feel perfectly fine.

Anna Kournikova defeated Ruxandra Dragomir, 4-6, 6-2, 6-4 in the Second Round Tennis match of du Maurier Open at Montreal, Canada, on Wednesday, August 19, 1998. The Post Match Interview with ANNA KOURNIKOVA…

Q: Anna, very competitive match. Were you surprised by the challenge from Dragomir?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: No. I knew that she was a good player. She’s a whole-court player and it was very difficult to adjust in the first set. It was really windy, and she used the court well and I made a few mistakes, so I knew that she was a good player.

Q: I was keeping track of the radar speeds on your serve. You were staying around 85, 90 miles-an-hour range whereas other players are in the 110 miles-an-hour range. Do you have to get more speed into your serve?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Well, it’s not how hard you serve. It’s where you serve, so I was just trying to put as many as possible first serves in and play out the point. I wasn’t concentrating on serving aces.

Q: Yesterday you lost to her in doubles. Was that a factor? Did it help in today’s game against her? Was that in the back of your mind?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: No, not really. I didn’t even think about that. It’s totally separate things.

Q: But the fact you met her yesterday, did that help in your game against her today?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: No not really. Doubles is different from singles. You can’t really tell the way a person plays by doubles.

Q: Did you feel the crowd was behind you?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Well, I think the crowd was for a good match, you know. So hopefully they enjoyed watching a good match.

Q: Obviously you are one of the younger girls compared to Steffi, for example. Do you feel that the change is happening right now or are you a little bit afraid of Steffi coming back maybe a little tough and she’s still there?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Well, I think the change has been happening for already like two years the young players have been playing, started playing. But the tour is as competitive as ever, so you know, it’s good that we have players like Steffi and the young players now at the same time.

Q: How do you like the people write about your private life and how beautiful you are in the newspapers and they regard you as one of the new Spice Girls in tennis. Does it affect your life or?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: I don’t think. I can’t say. Well, I don’t really concentrate on that, and I don’t pay any attention to that. I just concentrate on my tennis.

Q: Are you looking forward to your next match already?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Yes. You know, I’m going to play against Martinez and I played her twice this year, so it’s going to be an even match and I’m going to try to do my best.

Q: After falling back in the first game, what was the turning point for you to win?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: In the first game?

Q: Your whole match, your victory. What was the turning point in your victory? Can you pinpoint it to a certain thing?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: No. I think that in general I played good in general.

Q: Anna, after such a long break, did you expect yourself to play as well already at this tournament?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Well, you know, maybe it helped me a little bit. I worked out physically and I got a little bit of rest because I played a lot of tennis first six months, but I felt no pressure out there going and I was ready to play.

Q: Just wondering about your time in Montreal so far. Have you had a chance to explore the city at all? Have you found any good restaurants to recommend to any of us?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Well, I went to a Japanese restaurant so far, but I haven’t been around the city. I played very late last night and everything it was late.

Q: What is your personal goal for the next week, couple of weeks, how do you think about what’s going to happen? Do you think about it what’s going to happen in ‘98?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: I’m going to have to wait and see what’s going to happen. I’m just going to take it match at a time, day at a time and enjoy.

Anna Kournikova defeated Alexandra Fusai, 6-2, 6-4 in the First Round of du Maurier Open at Montreal, Canada, on Monday, August 17, 1998. The Post Match Interview with ANNA KOURNIKOVA…

Q: Anna, when did you recover from your injury exactly? When did you hold the racquet?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: A week and a half ago I started playing first time.

Q: Why was it so long?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: I don’t know. My doctor said that it was okay for me to start a week and a half ago and I started. I have been doing checkups every five days, something like that. I don’t know exactly what it was.

Q: And now it’s okay?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Yeah. Now it’s perfectly fine.

Q: It’s only your first round match, but certainly you might have had a bit of a scare there in the second set. How close did you come to losing this game?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: I don’t think it was not that close in the second set. I just lost my rhythm a little bit and she started to play better, of course, you know. I gave her a chance, but when you have a chance, of course, everybody tries to take it, but
afterwards, I got back in control, and I started to play more aggressively like I played in the first set. So afterwards, I felt very comfortable that I could close out the match.

Q: Here in Montreal we’re getting the first look at the Kournikova phenomenon, the fan support and just the buzz that surrounds you. You’re the one in the middle of all this. Is it distracting from the game of tennis to be the media darling, et cetera, et cetera?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Well, I’m here because of tennis, so I’m concentrating only on tennis, and everything else I guess it just comes with it, you know. I just try to think about tennis right now.

Q: This is Montreal which is a hockey town. Do you like hockey?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Why not?

Q: A lot?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Not a lot. One of my favourite sports.

Q: What did you work during your injury, did you work physically?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Yes. I was working out a lot. I didn’t have a vacation. I wished I would rest a little, but I was working out two hours a day physically, running and trying to play some other sports and Rollerblade, and you know, swimming and doing everything, trying to be active.

Q: Don’t you think the fact that you’re back isn’t too short from the U.S. Open, I mean it’s tomorrow, the U. S. Open. Do you think you will be prepared enough?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: It’s not tomorrow. It’s another two weeks. So it’s fine. I mean it’s not that difficult to come back. It wasn’t that long. Maybe it was even good for me to take a break because I played first six months non-stop, so maybe it was very
good for me, and you know, I still have the feel, like you saw today. I didn’t lose the feeling of the court. It’s just going to be a matter of a couple matches playing. It’s mentally, you know, confidence, get some confidence and I think I’ll be ready.

Q: In the second set did anything change halfway through that allowed you to pick up, because you were trailing in the second set. Was there a change in your game, a change anywhere that you noticed that marked the difference?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Well, not really. I just think that in the second set she started to play a little bit better. She had to do something, obviously, because she was losing. And like I said, I gave her a chance, and she obviously took it. And that was
probably my wakeup call that I started to play more aggressively, and at 3-3 I was up 40-0 and I was supposed to be up 4-3, but I don’t know. I lost that game. And you know, she started serving well in the second set.

Q: How about on the match points, the first two match points not so aggressive, the third match point very aggressive return. Did you say to yourself you wanted to be more aggressive?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Yeah, I think for sure I think the first two match points I tried to hold myself back a little bit, but what I think I should have done, I should have gone forward and be aggressive on the first ones.

Q: How much did you miss tennis?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: I missed a lot. I got tired of practising, of working out. I missed a lot, and it wasn’t boring, but there was just something missing and I wanted to get back to tournaments as soon as possible.

Q: Did you follow the results and especially Davenport’s success?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Yeah. I just saw some headlines and some news. I didn’t really follow.

Q: What did you think about the fact that Davenport won three tournaments in a row?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Well, obviously she’s in great form right now and she’s one of the top players for sure.

Q: Ruxandra Dragomir is your next challenge. How confident are you about your next match?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: I’ve never played her before, singles or doubles, but I’m playing against her tomorrow in doubles and then we’re playing singles after tomorrow. So that will be our first meeting tomorrow in doubles. I’m preparing for it like any other match and trying to be ready and looking forward to it.

Q: Do you feel there was anything that wasn’t quite there tonight because of the time out?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: No. I felt very physically in good shape, and like I said, I just have to get back into match playing mentally because no matter how much you practice, matches are totally different mentally.

Q: There seem to be a lot of great players coming out of eastern Europe and Russia. Do you have any explanation for why there’s so many great tennis talents coming out of those east European countries?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Well, one explanation might be probably there’s a school, like Czech Republic or Russia or Germany or any of those countries, there’s been a school, maybe a good organisation, something like that; tradition.

Q: So is there anything during this time-out that you were able to say I got this time-out, now I can read 16 books or I can go to a museum or learn how to play chess or something like that?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: I know how to play chess. No. Like I said, I was trying to be really active. I tried to do a lot of spots. I went jet-skiing for hours. My body was killing me afterwards. My hands were like this. And you know, nothing really specific. Just tried to be outdoors as much as possible.

Q: And were you able to play? I forgot which wrist it was. I guess it was your right.

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: I was playing left-handed a lot. I got much better, but my serve is terrible left-handed.

Q: Did you practice on your foot work?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Yeah. I was working on court, running and sprints and everything.

Q: The WTA Tour is very, very gruelling, a lot of events, a lot of practice, a lot of work. Do you feel that perhaps you’re sometimes a little bit too busy and working too hard and in danger of burning out?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: No. I don’t think so. Everything I’m doing I’m doing reasonable. I’m not over tiring myself or something, because if I’m tired, I will say that I’m tired, you know, and I feel comfortable with it.

Q: There were lots of fans waiting for you after the match, waiting for your autograph. Is it the same thing everywhere you go and do you enjoy that?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Well, I’m playing for the fans, so they deserve to get my autograph if they want to, and you know, I’m enjoying that they are here and they’re watching something that they enjoy watching.

Anna Kournikova Interview announcing her withdrawal due to injury in to her right thumb, from the A&P Classic Tennis Tournament 1998.

Q: Anna very nice to have you on the program

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Thank you.

Q: Now Anna you had to drop out of this event, and I know you missed Wimbledon and the Federation Cup is out as well. Anna I’m not a doctor but but I’ll play one here on tv. I’m guessing your thumb’s not getting much better right now.

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Well I’m trying to heal up as fast as I can, you know, and waiting for word from my doctor to say when I can start playing and hopefully it heals fast.

Q: Obviously this was going to be a breakout year for you, things are very good, your ranking is going up, your visibility has never been better, the bank account is probably pretty good. Anna how important is it to you to get that first Grand Slam win, the Championship?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Well I think, for me, it is real important to win as many matches as possible. Every match is important for me, of course every tournament is important. But you know, I just try to think, and take a step at a time.

Q: You know what you –(?) with the renaissance of women’s tennis. You, Martina Hingis, Venus and Serena Williams. The interest is so high right now in women’s tennis, and the rivalries are so good. My question is, it’s one thing to have these rivalries, and you never want to lose, but do the women have a healthy dislike for each other? I mean, is there actually hostility there?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Well i think, you know, the women’s game right now is so exciting because there are so many different personalities, and young, and the players that have already been there, and I think that’s why it’s so exciting.

Q: I mean, you don’t want to lose no matter what. But bottom line, Anna, you really don’t want to lose to Martina Hingis or Serena or Venus, right?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Well I don’t think anybody wants to lose to anybody. I think it’s real important to win as many matches as possible and it’s difficult as to play number 1 or number 100, no matter who you play you have to be your toughest and you have to play your game.

Q: I guess what I’m getting at is, no matter what, you need to compete, and you don’t need to be friends with everybody but because you’re all so young and you’re so gifted you’re going to be together for a long, long time. 10 years, 12 years. I mean, do you have to have a certain amount of stability in the locker room because you are going to be together for so long?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Well, we are competing on the court but off the court it’s just like any other people. We’re talking, we’re having fun, we’re going to the parties together. Because we have to see old players every time, every week, and we play alot of tournaments the whole year, so we are basically spending this year together, and for me so far it’s been just great.

Q: Anna, you are a very creative player. I mean, you like to play the angles, you have a nice dropshot. I’m guessing your idea of a perfect day would not be to sit behind the baseline and hit alot of groundies.

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: No. I like to create, I like to try new stuff, I like to discover and, you know, I like to use the court.

Q: Because there is so much interest in women’s tennis right now, do you thing you’ve reached a point where the women should be paid the same as the men for Grand Slam events?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: I don’t really think about it that much, but men play 5 sets and I think that it’s, for sure, much tougher to play and they have to be in better shape, always.

Q: Anna you said you’ve been having alot of fun this year. When you get right down to it, you might go down, that’s putting more pressure on you, but you might go down as the most marketed female athlete ever. Do you ever think about that or do you feel that kind of pressure at all?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: No, I try not to think about anything outside of tennis. I’m just concentrating on tennis right now, because that’s why I’m here.

Q: Now that’s the one thing. You want to think about tennis, and you want to play tennis. But no matter what, you are on magazines that are not tennis magazines, and there is alot of interest and there is alot of intrigue with you because physically you are very attractive and you have alot of a charisma. I’m wondering, does it trouble you that people want to write about things that are not tennis related, for instance your personal life or how you look?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Well I don’t think that I would be able to change that so i just might as well try not to think about it.

Q: There’s no way around it thought, people will always write about that and want to know about that. I mean, do you ever want to say “I’m here to play tennis, I just want to talk tennis”? –(?)Anna, even I’m doing it now.

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: No, I mean, if people want to know other sides of me, that’s fine with me.

Q: That’s not a problem then, so you can talk about these other things.

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Sure.

Q: If you had to win the grand slam, when it ultimately comes, and you almost made it to Wimbledon and won the thing two years ago. If you had to pick a first one, what would be the one you would like to win?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Like I said before, I think that every tournament to win is important and memorable, and of course the Grand Slams are the best tournaments you can ever win. But, you know, you just have to take a step at a time.

Q: You know, the powers that be in tennis try to measure up some of the other players, older players with some of the younger players. So, you see where Chris Evert relates to some of the younger players and Martina Navratilova or Billie Jean King. And some of them seem to think that the younger players are not respecting them enough. In your mind Anna, do the younger players of today owe the older players anything?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: I don’t think we owe anybody anything, but personally I show respect to everybody and I have never had any problems with the older players and never ever had any disagreement or something like that.

Q: We will wait and see for when the injury gets better. Anna Kournikova is missing this tournament and the federation cup but the future is very, very bright

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Okay, thank you.

Anna Kournikova announces her withdrawal from the tournament due to an injury to the ligaments of her right thumb.

Q: How do you feel about having to withdraw?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Well, I feel of course very sad about it. I mean, this is my favourite tournament, for sure. It is Wimbledon and I feel very sad and I feel I could do well on grass and really, I do not even know how to say it yet, but I was getting ready for it for a whole year thinking about coming back here again and playing on Centre Court, but I have many more Wimbledon’s to come.

Q: What is the your thumb and how bad is it?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: They said it is a torn ligament — strained ligament in my right thumb, so they said some weeks, three or four weeks.

Q: Is it torn or strained?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: It is not like very torn. It is strained and minor torn.

Q: Why did you leave it to the very last moment? You could have made a –

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: I was hoping a miracle could happen, I was hoping maybe it would get better and yesterday it got a little bit better but this morning when I woke up it was very difficult for me to move the finger, but, like I said, it is a very tough decision for me to make to withdraw, so I was hoping I could play. I was really ready and in great shape, playing at Eastbourne especially for Wimbledon, you know, so I was hoping in this way that I could play.

Q: How long do you think you will be now out of play?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Well, I think they said three weeks, no tennis, so then I can start — I have to do another X-ray and everything then I can start playing again.

Q: What will be your next tournament?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: I do not know yet. It is difficult to say for me right now.

Q: What are you going to do over the next fortnight, two weeks?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: I have not decided. I do not even know if I am going to go or stay. The plans are a little bit changed, so I have to decide.

Q: It might be tough to sit and watch a few matches

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Like I said, I come here and have the feeling of playing and it is strange that I am not playing, you know, but hopefully next year I will come back stronger and hopefully, you know, I lost the battle but I will win the war.

Q: Did you try to practice or no chance of you actually picking up the racquet with the way the thumb was?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: I saw doctors and they said it is much better to rest it, if I would rest it would get better, so I tried to rest it hoping it would get better, but I guess it did not, so …

Q: Did the doctor tell you not to play or did you decide yourself not to play?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Obviously, it is my decision, always, of course, but the doctor said of course I could try to play, but you know, he said maybe after one game it is going to be so much pounding and pressure, one good bounce and it will come back, pain again and everything, plus he said — I said that I do not feel like playing going on the court and playing one match and then withdrawing. If I want to play, I want to do good. I want to, you know, win some matches, not just one match, so I thought that I had to be really ready to play.

Q: Obviously, your main priority is to get ready for the US Open?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: My main priority is to get rid of the injury.

Q: It must make you that much more eager to play in New York in August for the next Grand Slam?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: The Grand Slam is Grand Slam and always good to play and even if it is a regular tournament I am always eager to play, but this is more special to me.

Q: You had a lot of supporters here this week. They will be very disappointed.

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Yes, well, I think I am very disappointed myself too, you know, that I — like I say, I play for the fans and, like I said, it is very difficult for me to express my feelings. It is a special tournament.

Q: Who do you expect will go on and win this tournament now?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Well, it is a close call, of course. There are so many good players and it is very difficult, but I think it is going to be one of the people who have already done it before.

Q: You have played her most recently, do you think Steffi will win, or do you think her game is not together yet?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Maybe, like I say, one day you play well and the next day you do not play well, and I do not really want to judge anybody. I just, you know — it is difficult for me to say.

Q: Why is Wimbledon your favourite Grand Slam?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Wimbledon is the tradition, and this is my first semi-final for a Grand Slam and Wimbledon probably is the top of the top of the whole tournaments, so probably — plus I really like the grass and the atmosphere here.

Q: If you hadn’t withdrawn, do you think it would’ve been tough?

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: I think all players from 1 to 32 are tough and you have to get ready for each match. I try not to think who is on the other side of the net when I play, as long as the ball is coming I am playing with me and with the ball, so, but of course, you know, there were some names in my half, but there are names everywhere, so …