Interview Autriche

St. Anton - At only 25 years of age, the pretty Anastasia Myskina has already reached a lot on the WTA tour. She has won 10 titles with the 2004 French Open trophy standing out. Boris Jelzin was among the crowd when Anastasia became the first Russian ever to win a Grand Slam title.

Myskina gives Austrian hope in tennis

In Austria Myskina made an impact on the yellow press thanks to her relationship with Austrian´s number one, Jurgen Melzer.

Myskina took her time to give an interview for Sport1 and she will explain why Austria will have a successful tennis year in 2007.

Sport1: How are you doing? Do you like St. Anton?

Myskina: Yes (I do), it´s already my second visit here following 2005 and it´s great. There´s no snow outside so it is not that perfect at the moment but it is still awesome because of the fresh air especially after having been in Moscow.

Sport1: Is it that awful in Moscow?

Myskina: Well, the temperature is basically the same but Moscow is suffering from heavy air pollution. Definetly not comparable to St. Anton!

Sport1: You really do seem to enjoy St. Anton.

Myskina: Yeah definetly. I like Austria in general. Thanks to Jurgen, I also had the chance to visit Vienna.

Sport1: Which part of Austria do like better? The eastern part or the western one?

Myskina: I actually do not see a noticable difference. I just think that Austria is a wonderful country. Kitzbuhel was great too. Due to the warm weather I was even able to take a swim in the lake. I could dive through the water which by the way was clear as cristal. However I also like the winter season here. My father used to spend his holidays here too.

Sport1: You had a terrible year in 2006 which resulted in you making announcements about an early retirement. Are you still thinking about that?

Myskina: The year started pretty well for me. I also played good tennis in Wimbledon and Paris. Unfortunately I hurt my foot later. There was no fracture but it was close. That is why I had to shorten the season. Anyway off-court I had a great time. I travelled around the world and I got to see a lot of mens´ tennis (smiling).

Sport1: So that is the reason why you were considering retirement?

Myskina: No, I was thinking about it because I did not know if I was ever able to recover completely. There was always so much pain but now things have changed - I am feeling well again and nothing hurts anymore. Therefore I will continue to play a little bit.

Sport1: So there will be no early goodbye?

Myskina: Never say never but right now I want play.

Sport1: You mentioned you had followed a couple of mens´ matches. Is there something you can learn from watching? Is Jurgen able to help you?

Myskina: I have learned a few things over the last couple of months. It is interesting to see other people play and practice. There´s a huge depth in mens tennis these days. It is really hard to crack the top 50 at all. Sometimes Jurgen helps me a bit but mainly I just watch.

Sport1: How about the other way around?

Myskina: No, that does not happen a lot. He is way better and stronger than me. In fact he is getting better and better lately. I am really happy about his quick rise in the rankings.

Sport1: What do you think about Jurgen´s next season?

Myskina: He could have a great time next year. He could crack the top 20 or even get into the top 10. I am already looking forward to his matches. I do believe that he is going to play amazing tennis in 2007. I really, really hope he will reach the top 10!

Sport1: What about your goals?

Myskina: I have been a member of the top 10 in the past so there is no reason why I could not reach it again. Everything depends on my goals, my motivation and the practice - if I do these things right, it will work out.

Sport1: The depth in womens tennis has grown over the last couple of years. Now there are three or four different Slam winners in a single year. Is this a good thing?

Myskina: I think it is great. Otherwise it would not be interesting for the viewers if you knew about the semifinalists and the winner beforehand. These days everything can happen.

Sport1: What are you going to do in the next couple of weeks?

Myskina: I will take a flight home and spend some time with my parents. I will also have to practice for the forthcoming season. Auckland will be my first tournament in 2007.


Sport1: Good luck for the next season and thank you very much for this interview.