World number one Serena Williams said that she doesn’t remember much about her shock first round loss at the Roland Garros tournament, even stressing that losing that match may have made a difference to her impressive run on the women’s tour since then.
“I don’t remember much about it,” Williams said. “I don’t remember anyone I may or may not have played. I know I played Venus in the final [in 2002, when Serena won her only French Open to begin a non-calendar Grand Slam]. I do remember playing Dally Randriantefy [in the 2002 second round]. Don’t ask me why.”
“Sometimes I think ‘should I be happy that I lost last year?’ You never know why things happen. It was great for me to realize that every match counts. I still want to be the best player I can be,” she added.
After her loss in Paris, Williams regrouped and the hard work paid off. She went on to win the other two Grand Slam events of the year – Wimbledon and US Open, the London Olympics gold medal and the Year-end WTA Tour championships.
Surprisingly, Williams has only won one French Open title, which was in 2002 and she’s raring to add another one in her collection. She said that she’s going to be cautious this time, pointing out that she had a good run prior to the French Open but still lost.
“I’m getting into that zone I always wanted to be in,” she said. “I have played a lot more tennis this last year. Coming back [from injury in late 2010 and much of 2011] I had nothing to lose. In the past when I played I was always so stressed out and always wanted to win, win, win. Now I’m having a lot more fun than I used to. It would be great to win a second title here. But one is better than zero.”
