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Interview With Luke Jensen

Aired June 02, 2003 - 15:51   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Another match, another upset. Sacre bleu.
Three-time French champion Gustavo Kuerten -- and my next guest will try to work on my pronunciation of that. He is of Brazil, he's out today, defeated by Tommy Robredo, Robredo. Spain now has four men among the final eight. The top Americans, Andre Agassi, Serena Williams -- I knew those -- are preparing for tomorrow's quarterfinal matches. And let's get some analysis now help on the pronunciation guide from Luke Jensen, tennis star.

LUKE JENSEN, PRO TENNIS PLAYER: Miles, it was perfect.

O'BRIEN: I did it right.

JENSEN: Oh, the Spanish, Portuguese...

O'BRIEN: Magnifique, eh?

JENSEN: Yes. The French.

O'BRIEN: All right, let's talk about who's not in the tournament still. In many ways, that's the story here. Williams sister gone -- we're not going to get a Williams versus Williams final. I guess some people are probably OK with that. Right?

JENSEN: Well some people but to me, Venus has been injured throughout the entire season. A wrist here, a hammy here. So she hasn't been playing the matches she needs to play at that level. She's very disappointed not to be moving forward.

O'BRIEN: So are you, then, not surprised, given the injuries she's faced?

JENSEN: Well, in death of women's tennis. Capriati goes out, Davenport goes out. In my opinion, there are so many good women that you don't even hear of. Two Russians knock off Williams and knock off Capriati because now women believe they can compete at that level.

O'BRIEN: Wow, talk about glasnost. When did the Russians become great powerhouses in women's tennis?

JENSEN: Well there's such good training over there, they have great coaching, and it's a one-way ticket. In the United States, we have so many options. We can go to universities and things. But for the Russians, you leave there for the big money on the pros, and it's a one-way ticket. If you don't make it, you're not coming home.

O'BRIEN: Oh, interesting, interesting. Well that's an incentive.

All right, Andre Agassi is still in it. And 33, that puts him well into the old man category. We're not going to talk about our respective ages here right now.

JENSEN: You're 19.

O'BRIEN: And holding.

But it's good to see him still in there. He got the legs, quite literally, the legs to do it.

JENSEN: I think. So he's got a lot of guts. One of the things when you look at Andre Agassi is his fitness. He trains so hard on the court, side to side. He has a wife now, Steffi Graf, who understands the grueling grind of the practices and the matches. He has a very tough match in the quarterfinals with Guillermo Coria who's playing very good right now. That's going to be a tough test, but I think Andre Agassi's going to win his second slam of the year.

O'BRIEN: Really? Really, that's -- and at that age, what kind of category does that put him? How many people have done it at age? Put it that way.

JENSEN: Well, it's very tough. Because the clay court tennis is very difficult on the body. It's very long. You play long matches. Guys can come after you. Andre just can't hit winners from forehands and backhands. In my opinion, it's about fitness. And if you go out with the right mentality, patience and balance and good strategy, you can win.

O'BRIEN: Of course, the clay is easier on your knees, too.

JENSEN: Oh, absolutely, yes. In the bigger picture, but, you know Andre Agassi, even though he is older, he's wiser. You know, like you. A wily veteran out here. So he's going to hit dropshots and big backhands and really use the Xs and Os to be a better player and win matches.

O'BRIEN: All right, we were watching great interest Annika Sorenstam and her...

JENSEN: You're not going to ask me these questions.

O'BRIEN: Well you know is it time to bring back the, you know, the famous...

JENSEN: Bobby?

O'BRIEN: ... Bobby and Billie Jean? That was such a great moment for tennis, wasn't it? Not. Anyway...

JENSEN: Yes, well, I think it was just 30 years since Bobby played, you know, Billie Jean King...

O'BRIEN: Been 30 years, hasn't it?

JENSEN: Yes, 30 years since the Hustling Bobby Riggs and Billie Jean King. But there is a lot of talk. And if Serena continues to dominate, I think she should step out and play some tournaments. Why not? I mean she's strong, she's fast. If she trains at this level, you never know. I don't think she can just go out there in one tournament and do it. She has to play a number of tournaments.

O'BRIEN: Interesting. Could she knock off some of the top- seeded guys you think?

JENSEN: Not the top-seed guys, but you have to work into it. You just can't show up and play. I mean the level is different, the strength different.

O'BRIEN: All right, excellent. Luke Jensen, thanks very much.

JENSEN: Thanks, Miles.

O'BRIEN: You want a player?

JENSEN: Yes. (UNINTELLIGIBLE), come on.

JENSEN: All right, Luke Jensen, tennis star and analyst. Thank you for your insights.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired June 2, 2003 - 15:51   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Another match, another upset. Sacre bleu.
Three-time French champion Gustavo Kuerten -- and my next guest will try to work on my pronunciation of that. He is of Brazil, he's out today, defeated by Tommy Robredo, Robredo. Spain now has four men among the final eight. The top Americans, Andre Agassi, Serena Williams -- I knew those -- are preparing for tomorrow's quarterfinal matches. And let's get some analysis now help on the pronunciation guide from Luke Jensen, tennis star.

LUKE JENSEN, PRO TENNIS PLAYER: Miles, it was perfect.

O'BRIEN: I did it right.

JENSEN: Oh, the Spanish, Portuguese...

O'BRIEN: Magnifique, eh?

JENSEN: Yes. The French.

O'BRIEN: All right, let's talk about who's not in the tournament still. In many ways, that's the story here. Williams sister gone -- we're not going to get a Williams versus Williams final. I guess some people are probably OK with that. Right?

JENSEN: Well some people but to me, Venus has been injured throughout the entire season. A wrist here, a hammy here. So she hasn't been playing the matches she needs to play at that level. She's very disappointed not to be moving forward.

O'BRIEN: So are you, then, not surprised, given the injuries she's faced?

JENSEN: Well, in death of women's tennis. Capriati goes out, Davenport goes out. In my opinion, there are so many good women that you don't even hear of. Two Russians knock off Williams and knock off Capriati because now women believe they can compete at that level.

O'BRIEN: Wow, talk about glasnost. When did the Russians become great powerhouses in women's tennis?

JENSEN: Well there's such good training over there, they have great coaching, and it's a one-way ticket. In the United States, we have so many options. We can go to universities and things. But for the Russians, you leave there for the big money on the pros, and it's a one-way ticket. If you don't make it, you're not coming home.

O'BRIEN: Oh, interesting, interesting. Well that's an incentive.

All right, Andre Agassi is still in it. And 33, that puts him well into the old man category. We're not going to talk about our respective ages here right now.

JENSEN: You're 19.

O'BRIEN: And holding.

But it's good to see him still in there. He got the legs, quite literally, the legs to do it.

JENSEN: I think. So he's got a lot of guts. One of the things when you look at Andre Agassi is his fitness. He trains so hard on the court, side to side. He has a wife now, Steffi Graf, who understands the grueling grind of the practices and the matches. He has a very tough match in the quarterfinals with Guillermo Coria who's playing very good right now. That's going to be a tough test, but I think Andre Agassi's going to win his second slam of the year.

O'BRIEN: Really? Really, that's -- and at that age, what kind of category does that put him? How many people have done it at age? Put it that way.

JENSEN: Well, it's very tough. Because the clay court tennis is very difficult on the body. It's very long. You play long matches. Guys can come after you. Andre just can't hit winners from forehands and backhands. In my opinion, it's about fitness. And if you go out with the right mentality, patience and balance and good strategy, you can win.

O'BRIEN: Of course, the clay is easier on your knees, too.

JENSEN: Oh, absolutely, yes. In the bigger picture, but, you know Andre Agassi, even though he is older, he's wiser. You know, like you. A wily veteran out here. So he's going to hit dropshots and big backhands and really use the Xs and Os to be a better player and win matches.

O'BRIEN: All right, we were watching great interest Annika Sorenstam and her...

JENSEN: You're not going to ask me these questions.

O'BRIEN: Well you know is it time to bring back the, you know, the famous...

JENSEN: Bobby?

O'BRIEN: ... Bobby and Billie Jean? That was such a great moment for tennis, wasn't it? Not. Anyway...

JENSEN: Yes, well, I think it was just 30 years since Bobby played, you know, Billie Jean King...

O'BRIEN: Been 30 years, hasn't it?

JENSEN: Yes, 30 years since the Hustling Bobby Riggs and Billie Jean King. But there is a lot of talk. And if Serena continues to dominate, I think she should step out and play some tournaments. Why not? I mean she's strong, she's fast. If she trains at this level, you never know. I don't think she can just go out there in one tournament and do it. She has to play a number of tournaments.

O'BRIEN: Interesting. Could she knock off some of the top- seeded guys you think?

JENSEN: Not the top-seed guys, but you have to work into it. You just can't show up and play. I mean the level is different, the strength different.

O'BRIEN: All right, excellent. Luke Jensen, thanks very much.

JENSEN: Thanks, Miles.

O'BRIEN: You want a player?

JENSEN: Yes. (UNINTELLIGIBLE), come on.

JENSEN: All right, Luke Jensen, tennis star and analyst. Thank you for your insights.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com