Elena Dementieva Match Quotations

Like I said, it was a difficult match to play after four hours waiting. You know when you play against Patty Schnyder , you're very focused on what she likes to do, what she doesn't like to do.

She had a match point, but I never give up, ... You just go for it.

She was playing very well and it was a tough first match for me.

I don't think I can change anything in my game, ... I feel disappointed with this loss, but at the same time I know how well I can play. It wasn't my day (Thursday) and she was playing unbelievably well. It's more than two days before I'll play my first match in the U.S. Open so I'll be OK.

I watched her match last night and I was shocked by the way she was playing. She was playing unbelievable the whole year.

I was glad that I could change the match around after that bad first set, ... She was playing like she had nothing to lose, which makes it hard because she really went for winners and was so aggressive. I really wanted to play her again after losing to her last week.

To play at 10 o'clock, that means you have to wake up at 6 and when you go for your warm-up you don't feel fast enough because it's early in the morning, ... I wasn't nervous about it, but during the match I felt that I didn't move that well and she just put a lot of pressure on me.

Both of us knew that winning the first set was the key to the whole match because we were both getting tired from the week-long tournament.

I know she's a great fighter, she never gives you the match until the last point, ... I was ready to play a long match, and that's how it was.

It was a close match and very emotional for both of us. I have had so many matches winning 7-6 in the third, so I know how it feels to be that close and when one point can decide the whole match that we play for almost three hours. It's a great challenge for me to play against someone who is younger, who has nothing to lose, who is from Russia.

For me it's very important to play one week before the U.S. Open and to have this match practice, ... Just to play on the same surface and use the same balls they use at the U.S. Open. Especially after the great results at the U.S. Open last year, I decided I would do the same thing this year.

I told Martina that I just seem to have one good day per week, otherwise I'd be No. 1 already. This kind of match really gives me a lot of confidence.

It was a very close match, so even though she had a match point, I never gave up. I was just going for the winner.

It was a very tough match but I am just thinking, 'Why is my favorite score 7-6 in the third?

This was the best match I ever played. For me, Kim is the best player in the world -- this will give me confidence for the future.

It's been a long time I could finish the match like that in less than an hour. I was feeling very confident with every shot that I was making.