Mary Pierce: Tennis-X 5 Questions

Posted on April 18, 2005

By Richard Vach

France's Mary Pierce has been a drain on the WTA medical plan, with a laundry list of injuries over the last five years alone including right rotator cuff tendonitis, tendonitis in both ankles, chronic inflammation of the lumbar spine, a major abdominal strain, and late last year another shoulder injury.

But now the 30-year-old Pierce, who used her injury down-time wisely and appears to be in great shape, enters the 2005 claycourt season, one of her favorite legs of the year, injury free.

Pierce has won 16 titles since turning pro 16 years ago, and reached a career-high No. 3 on the WTA Tour Rankings in 1995. While the title count is not extraordinarily large, the quality of the trophies are, with Pierce almost certain to end her career as one of the few players to win two slams (1995 Australian Open, 2000 French Open) without reaching No. 1.

Tennis-X caught up with Pierce earlier this month at Amelia Island to grill the French powerhouse on her current physical status, and what it takes to top the rankings in these modern times:

Tennis-X: You had a tough start to the year, but it seemed you turned the corner at Indian Wells with your wins over (Nicole) Vaidisova and (Nadia) Petrova, was there a mental turning point, did you feel anything or was it just playing better?

Mary Pierce: No, I think for me, with my shoulder injury I couldn't play for two months, it just took me time to get the shoulder strong to get confident in using it again, getting the power 100 percent, being able to train tennis-wise because physically I was able to train (off-court) so I felt well, pretty good. I felt I had to spend two or three months on the court before I felt like my game was going to come back together, and it's been those two or three months now.

X: How are you physically now, 100 percent?

MP: Uh-huh, great, I'm feeling really good.

X: In Indian Wells you talked about what a player needs to become No. 1 nowadays. It seems like there is a "big banger" camp and an "all-court" camp -- I want to run the names of the players likely to be in the race for the year-end No. 1, and I want to see what camp you put them in.

MP: Okay.

X: (Lindsay) Davenport.

MP: (Exhales, pauses) Hmmmmmm....that's a tough one...yeah, because she's not afraid to come into the net, but she doesn't come in a lot, so...that's tough. She's just good all-around...

X: What about (Amelie) Mauresmo?

MP: Mauresmoooooooo...yeah, all-around.

X: (Maria) Sharapova?

MP: Sharapova's a big banger.

X: Venus (Williams)?

MP: More a big banger.

X: Serena:

MP: A big banger.

X: How about the two Belgians?

MP: Kimmmmmm, and Justine I would say, all-around.

X: Do you think a big banger can take No. 1 again, like Serena and Venus did?

MP: Uhhhhh -- you know I think you have to be able to play at the net and be able to play at the baseline and defend. Have a good serve, you need all those things nowadays because the girls are quick -- big serves, good returns -- fit, you need to have it all really. I mean the big banger can, its just tougher.

X: You and Mauresmo missed the Fed Cup final last year, you with the injury -- is Fed Cup really a big deal to the players, or has interest been waning?

MP: It really depends on the individual, if they want to play it and put it in their schedule or not. I really love it because it's fun, I love to get together with the girls for a week and we train and eat together and hang out and support each other when we play our matches, and for me it's nice and different, during the year when we're doing our own thing, you know.

X: 2000 was the last year you finished Top 20, what's between you and achieving that ranking level again -- is it more mental, physical?

MP: It's just time. I think I really feel like I'm playing well, I can compete with the top players -- I beat Petrova last week, she was 12 in the world and I beat her 2-and-2. You know, I think just time, that I play tournaments and have consistence results and my ranking will just follow with that.

X: Thanks Mary.
 
Trivia note: Who is the youngest American woman to turn pro? In 1989 it was Mary Pierce, who qualified to the main draw at Hilton Head in her first WTA event at 14 years and two months of age. Jennifer Capriati broke the record the following year in 1990, turning pro at age 5 (or something like that). Two years after her debut Pierce finished in the Top 100, the next year the Top 20, two years later the Top 10, then the following year won her first slam in Australia.