Interview done before the Fed Cup quarterfinals 2003 between Spain and France.

(Translation from Diario La Provincia (19/07/2003))

Question: How do you arrive at this international event?.

Magüi: I arrive OK. Things are going really well for me this season. The tie against France is going to be very tough. France has a very tough team. But my partners and I are looking forward to the win.

Q.: Do you dare with a prognostic?. Maybe a close result?.

M.: I don’t dare with a prognostic, but I think it’s going to be very close. All the matches are playable. Maybe we have to remember that Amelie Mauresmo is the number 6 of the world. She is very fit and very regular. Dechy is also really good. All the matches are going to be very tough and the win can be for any of us.

Q.: Are you aware that France is the favourite although in the previous ties between both countries Spain leads?.

M.: Yes, it’s true that France is favourite because of the absences of Arantxa and Conchita.

Q.: Which is going to be the key match of this tie?. Maybe the doubles match?.

M.: I think that all the matches are going to be key. The singles matches are going to be very close. If we can win before the doubles match, much better.

Q.: Does being the Spain’s number one against France bring you inquietude?.

M.: Not at all, on the contrary, this motivates me. Besides, I’ve been waiting for this chance for a long time.

Q.: Is this Spanish team that plays France good enough to make forget Arantxa and Conchita?.

M.: It’s going to take a long time to forget Arantxa and Conchita. With them Spain won the Fed Cup 5 times in the last 10 years and played many finals. We have to work a lot so that the fans don’t miss them, great figures of the Spanish tennis.

Q.: When you were starting your career, someone said you would be Arantxa’s successor.

M.: That’s true. This brought me much pressure at first. Now I take it as a flattery. Arantxa was the number one of the world after winning many tournaments. Being compared to her is a pride, although the fillet is very high for us. But we have to try to achieve that.

Q.: Can the court and the atmosphere in Oviedo have an influence in the tie?.

M.: The crowd is a very important factor for the ones that play at home. I’ve always said that I hope that the court is full and supports the Spanish team. You can notice a lot the crowd’s help when you are on the court.

Q.: And after the Fed Cup?.

M.: I’ll be a couple of daays at home in Las Palmas and later I’ll go to the USA and Canada till the beginning of September  to play in some tournaments in San Diego, Los Ángeles, Toronto and New York.

Q.: What’s the evaluation of the season so far?.

M.: This is one of the most regular years of my career. I have still many tournaments to play. With this regularity I can get good things.

Q.: You are top 30 of the world at the moment.

M.: Last week I was the number 29, much better than last year at this time.

Q.: Does it seem to you an Utopia winning Wimbledon or Roland Garros seeing the strength of the Williams and other players of that level?.

M.: I don’t consider an Utopia winning one of those tournaments, it’s a goal less far at my 24 years old. I saw it further some years ago. My trajectory in the last times is much more regular.

Q.: Did tennis give you more than you have given to it?.

M.: Tennis has given me a lot, but it has also taken away a lot. Due to tennis I left Las Palmas at 13 years ago and spent 9 years in Barcelona. One year and a half ago I came back home. Tennis has given me many satisfactions, but I had to forget many normal things in the adolescence, living together with the family and many friends.

Q.: Do you repent of that?.

M.: No, because I like tennis very much. I minimize all the negative things and make them disappear. Since I was 3 years old I knew that I wanted to be a tennis player. I’m doing what I like and this compensates some renunciations. I wouldn’t change the years spent with tennis for any other thing.

Q.: Who was your reference in the first years?.

M.: Steffi Graf.

Q.: When she went on holiday to Maspalomas?.

M.: I know, I know.

Q.: You coincided later in some tournaments.

M.: Yes. I could beat her once in Montreal, although she was coming back from an injury.

Q.: You could also beat Serena.

M.: Yes. In the late nineties I defeated her in Los Ángeles. It was in her beginnings. Later I lost to her in Miami and in other places we have played. I think Serena is more complete than her sister Venus.

Q.: Do you have a personal desire for when you quit tennis?.

M.: I’m studying Management and Administration of Enterprises. I want to finish this career, although I think I’ll be vinculated to the sports world.

Other things

Actor: Tom Cruise.

Actress: Julia Roberts.

She prefers the sea to the mountain.

PShe likes the novel and the Egyptology.

Gastronomy: Her weakness is a squids dish.

Drink: Water and if it’s from Firgas, much better.

A sentence that she has done hers: Do the good and don’t look at who.