1st Round
Anna Kournikova beats Cara Black
7:6,6:2
January 1, 2002
"It was very important that I came back in the tiebreak," she said. "I played well in the first game and then she started playing really well."
"She made some mistakes in the first set especially after leading 4-1 and then I tried to focus and be more constant and think about what she was going to do instead of doing something of my own."
"I was a little bit excited about the first match of the year, but it was great I had a lot of fun out there."
Almost unbearable 37 degree heat on centre court...
"Once I was out there I didn't really feel it," she said. "It's difficult to get used to over the first couple of games but once I got into it I was pretty much fine. I have played in South Africa where it was 43 degrees."
"The first tournament of the year is always difficult, and because I have never been here before and I had to deal with new surroundings and get used to the weather it was good to come here then."
"I'm really excited that the stadium is full, that means they came to cheer for me and that helps me," she said.
"I find the atmosphere here almost the same as Australia and in Australia they are really loud."
Kournikova plays Amy Frazier in the next round...
"It is going to be an interesting match," said Kournikova looking forward to the clash. "We haven't played against each other in a long time, but we practiced against each other a couple of weeks ago and we know each other's game.
"Amy is a classy player, she hits the ball really hard and flat so I will have to be ready for fast balls."
"I tried to play more consistent," Kournikova said. "It was really important for me to win that tiebreaker. Once I won that first set, I was kind of more relaxed and was hitting the ball more and playing more aggressive."
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