Jelena Jankovic made it to the Semifinals after a win over Elena Dementieva not in the way Jelena hoped it to be as Elena retired during 2nd set due to injury. Jelena lead 1:0 in sets, 6:1 in games, and led in 2nd set 3:1 in games when Elena retired due to back pain.
Jelena was dominating the first set, started with a 3:0 lead, then lost service game for 3:1, later won all games and set on the second set point. In the 2nd set, Jelena made a break for 3:1 lead, after which Elena retired.
Jelena: 'I think I played pretty good tennis, especially in the first set. I was really dictating the points. I thought that I played quite well. I didn't let her play her game. I really put my ‑‑ it was my game overall that was out there on the court, and I was really happy with that'.
Jelena: 'But unfortunately she stopped the match in the middle of the second set, and there's nothing I could do. But I was really focused out there. I was executing my shots well. I was really doing the right things and playing pretty well tactically'.
Jelena: 'I have a cold. I got a cold again for some reason. There's some cold going around here with players, and the rest of the, you know, the guests and the coaches and et cetera. So I'm more focussed than usual because I know that I'm not 100 percent with my health'.
Jelena: 'I'm coughing a lot. My nose is running. But really when I go on court I don't really think about that. I just think about playing one point at a time, what is my game plan, what do I have to do in order to win? I've been doing quite well'.
Jelena: 'I just got antibiotics last night. Finally they gave it to me, because they always wanted ‑‑ they always think that you can get over it naturally, but it takes so long. I've been suffering the last, I don't know how many days'.
Jelena: 'So finally I got on antibiotics, and hopefully I'll be fine in a couple of days. I felt a little bit weak here and there. What can I do? I have to go through and have to be strong. It's okay. No problem'.
Jelena: 'I never played well here, and as well as Indian Wells. Those tournaments I never really could find my game, and always had trouble playing well. But now this has changed this year. I played semis at Indian Wells and I'm playing semis tomorrow night, and hopefully I don't want to stop'.
Jelena: 'I'm playing well at this tournament. I've been working very hard. I feel like I'm playing better and better each time. My game is going to the next level, which is important. Hopefully I can step it up and go further'.
Jelena: 'When I'm playing I always try to finish the match and try to complete it no matter what. But some players, they don't want to risk ‑‑ it's individual, but that's her choice. I don't want to comment on her, what kind of injuries she has, how she felt on the court. I went out there, I did my job, and I'm happy with the win. I'm in semifinal, and that's the most important thing'.
Jelena: 'I'm fighting. I'm sick, you know. I cannot play; I cannot breathe on the court. I cannot play. I don't want to go on the court. But I'm hanging in there and trying to be strong, trying to get over the cold, and that's the most important thing'.
Jelena: 'The last couple of days have been really exhausting for me, because I played three days in a row. I played that night where I finished at 12:30 in the morning, and then couldn't go to bed until 2:30 in the morning. Then played, I don't know, several hours later, I played my fourth round, and then I only had a day off yesterday, which was good'.
Jelena: 'But I'm hanging there. It took a lot out of me. Especially that first match was really tough mentally. To come back after being down 5‑1, I don't know, five or six match points. It was a scary feeling, you know, just thinking that I may be over, you know, with this tournament, that it's the end of it. But I was really strong mentally and was able to get through that match, which gave me a lot of confidence for the rest of the tournament'.
Jelena: 'Normally in the big tournaments we have one day we play and the next day we don't play. Here we have three days in a row where we played, and especially I played the second match after 8:00 at night. I had to play the next day, which I think can be quite tough for the players, you know, to recover. You cannot go to bed until really late in the morning, and then you have to play the match several hours later and you're quite exhausted.
Jelena: 'I played a three‑hour match, and I had to come back here the next day. It was several hours later I'm playing against Safarova, which was another tough match. But I was able to come through all of this and I'm in the semifinal; there's no point to complain'.
Elena said she started feeling lower back pain the day before the match (2 days ago) and that Jelena has what it takes to make win the title.
Elena: 'She (Jelena) has the whole package of the game. She's moving well, has a good forehand, backhand. Whole game is very solid. She's very relaxed on the court and enjoys playing. She's a very tough opponent'.
While Jelena has been Top #3 or #4 for some time now, it still looks subreal with what ease she is making it to the Quarterfinals and Semifinals of each tournament she particates in, she must be the player who played the most Quarterfinals of Tier I (including Grand Slam) event. Every player outside Top 5 would have it in the high-light of the year box to reach what Jelena is achieving tournament after tournament.
