You talk about teamwork, but don’t all the other female players hate you? You’re better than them and hot!
But that’s what women’s tennis has always been like. Female players have big egos. We get jealous easily and we’re very competitive by nature. So yes, it’s very hard for us to sit together. Men’s tennis is completely different. Those guys hang out with each other, train together and practise together. But either way, I’m still living my dream at the moment.
So how do you rate players like Maria Sharapova (ranked second) and Serena (sixth) and Venus Williams (seventh)? You could kick their arses, right?
According to the rankings I am better than them, but they’re all great players. Although Maria and I have only had a few games together so far and we’re even: two to her, two to me. Serena I played once – she won. And Venus, it’s three to her, one to me. But the Williams sisters are extremely good. They’ve changed the game, certainly.
Anna Kournikova was crap, right?
Anna Kournikova had talent, but she was of a different time. She just never won a title, had some injuries, then quit tennis at a very young age to start modelling and appear in adverts. That’s something I’d never do. Tennis is my priority.
But you clearly enjoyed modelling for our shoot…
Modelling was great fun, and it’s great to do something different, especially when you spend so many hours of your life on a tennis court. But generally speaking, I’m a tennis player first.
You must get sex-pested by men constantly…
It’s always flattering when you get compliments from men. All women love it. It’s just that with all the travelling I do with my job – I’ve played six tournaments so far this year – it’s hard to have a proper boyfriend. Plus I’m only 20, and I know the men who contact me asking to marry me don’t mean anything by it. The only thing that gets to me is when male supporters in the crowd shout, “Don’t be nervous, Ana!” Because I am nervous, and it makes me feel even more anxious about the next shot. But, to a degree, without their attention I wouldn’t be talking to FHM now.
What kind of guys do you go for?
There’s two types: I prefer either the classic ‘tall with dark hair’ look, a bit like George Clooney. Or men who look like that main guy from Prison Break. I’m addicted to both that show and Lost. And I love a man that’s funny…
Okay, so two peanuts are walking down the road – one was assaulted. Huh? ‘A salted’. Get it? THIS GUY!
[Uneasy silence. Ana stares at her shoes]
Okaaay. So anyway, apart from telling jokes based on puns, what else do guys chatting you up get wrong?
I’m not really a fan of cheesy lines. And if a guy gets too pushy, it puts me off. I think one of the worst things a man can do is ask for my phone number and then keep texting and calling me. Sometimes it can be too much.